Life in Washington
by ANNAFLORINDA
Summary: Follow the lives of: Josh, Donna, Sam, Charlie, Mallory & CJ. Sam is getting a divorce and has fancied Mallory for years, Josh is a single father, raising the daughter he and Amy had together and he and Donna are best friends and Charlie is dating Zoe. Pairs: Sam/Mallory, Josh/Kate, Donna/Joe Q, Josh/Amy, Charlie/Zoe, others...
1. Chapter 1

Prologue.

"Lisa, how could you do this to me?" Sam Seaborn, asked his wife, his voice breaking with the very emotion of what was happening; he and Lisa had been together since they had been 18 and they had married 4 years ago-when they had been 21; when they had married, Sam had thought that she would be the only woman whom he would only love.

Obviously, he had been wrong. So very wrong.

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed his car keys and stormed out of the house. He and Lisa lived in the countryside near one of the entrances to Washington; he knew that his best friend, Josh, or his sister, Donna, would let him stay until he found a place of his own.

He went to Josh's, because it was closer to where he had lived and he was too angry to drive for ages.

With shaking hands, Sam knocked on the door and waited.

"Sam?" Josh asked, as soon as they were inside his flat. "Sam, what's going on?"

Sam sat down on the sofa and Josh did the same. He was trying to find the words to say what Lisa had done.

Sighing, he finally replied, "I found out that Lisa had been having an affair. I'm asking for a divorce, Josh; she obviously doesn't love me anymore."

One of the things he liked about Josh was he knew that he wouldn't ask him questions, whereas Donna, his little sister, would. He and Josh had been friends since university and they had a very strong friendship.

His friend stood up. "I'll set up the guest room for you; you can stay here as long as you need, Sam."

Sam smiled back at his friend, grateful for his kindness before adding, "Er-do you think maybe you could not tell Donna-at least for a while?" Josh and Donna were very close friends and they told each other nearly everything.

Josh nodded, then left to sort out the spare bedroom for Sam.

As he was waiting, Sam pulled out his mobile phone and texted his friends, C.J and Charlie, telling them that, if they wanted to contact them, they should do it by his mobile or by ringing Josh's home line. Instantly, they asked why, so he replied that he was staying with Josh for a while and then turned off his mobile phone, before throwing his head back on the sofa and closing his eyes.

The next morning…

Early the next morning, Donna was on her way to Josh's flat, as she had documents to show him; as a journalist of her calibre, she sometimes had access to information which would be useful to him and he, sometimes, did the same to her. She and Josh had first met after Donna's first term at university, aged 18, and Sam's 20th birthday party. Whilst she had not liked him at first, she had later began to and after his moving to Washington after they graduated, they had become very good friends; they were the same age and had a great deal in common. Now, at 25, they were still best friends.

Sam, her elder brother, was two years her senior and her roommates were named Mallory O'Brien and Ainsley Hayes. Mallory and Josh were old, family childhood friends, but none of them really knew Ainsley and Donna wanted her friends and brother to get to know her. One of her co-workers was a woman named C.J, who was friends with a man named Charlie, who had worked with Josh for a while, and, thus, the seven of them were all connected, either via blood, school, university, work or old family friendships.

As Donna walked into Josh's flat, she was surprised to see her brother sitting at the table in the kitchen with Josh.

"Sam?" She asked, as she took off her coat and sat at the table. "What are you doing here?"

Sam glanced at Josh, who stood up and walked over to the sink. He avoided his sister's eyes and replied, "Oh, you know…I just crashed here at Josh's last night-it's no big deal."

Brother and sister were very close and each knew when the other was lying; Donna took hold of her brother's hand asked, "Sam, what's wrong? If you don't tell me, I'll just ask Josh." She added, smiling to her friend who was doing his best to give them so privacy.

Squeezing her hand and deciding to be honest, Sam answered. "Lisa and I are getting divorced."

"What? Why?" Donna was shocked and stunned. She had known Lisa since she had been 16 and she knew that Sam truly loved her.

"She was having an affair." Sam whispered, trying not to sound too upset.

Without having words for comfort, Donna stood up and wrapped her arms around her brother. They stayed in that embrace for a while, then Sam stood up and said that he was going to go and have a shower.

As soon as he was in the bathroom, Donna turned to Josh and asked, "Do you know anything else?"

Standing up, Josh replied, "No, I'm sorry; he didn't say much last night. I don't think he wanted to tell you or your parents." At the mention of her parents, Donna's face dropped and Josh took her hand and let her over to the sofa. "What's wrong?"

Clearing her eyes, she whispered, "I haven't told Sam yet-and I shan't for a while now-, but Madre called me this morning and she that she and Papa are getting a divorce; it turns out they've been separated legally for a while, and now, they just want their marriage to be over. But the worst part is that-Madre is going to move back to Spain and Papa is going to move back to Canada." Tears fell down her face and she whipped them away, forcing a smile. "I just-I always thought that, as an adult, Sam and I wouldn't have to worry about this, you know? I thought they loved each other."

After a moment of silence, Josh remarked, in a low voice, "My dad was an alcoholic-he's stopped now-but after"-he suddenly broke off and Donna saw a haunted look in his eyes. "-Something happened to my family and my dad drank and he and my mum separated for a while. I was 12 and I'd already—been through stuff. You'll be fine, Donna, and so will Sam."

Josh very rarely spoke about his parents; they were Jewish, both from Germany and they had both survived the Holocaust, but that was all his friends knew. Mallory knew more, but Donna had never asked her, because there must have been a reason why Josh didn't speak of his childhood.

"Thanks, Josh." Donna smiled. They hugged and she whispered, "I don't know what I'd do without you." With that, she stood up and left the flat.

A couple of minutes after Donna left, Mallory came in and sat with Josh on the sofa. "What's wrong with Donna? She looks upset."

Josh knew that he could trust the person whom he loved like a sister not to tell anyone, so he replied, "Sam and Donna's parents are getting divorced-Andrew's gonna move back to Canada and Marie back to Spain."

"Well, my parents are divorced-Mum lives in Boston and Dad lives her. Do you see me crying?" She sighed, then added, "I'm sorry; I know that sounded really bad. I guess I've always been jealous of people with parents living together, because mine separated when I was a teenager."

Nodding, Josh sighed. "Yeah, I know, Mal." He smiled affectionately.

"I think Dad's staying with your parents at the moment. I bet you miss him at work." She laughed, then kissed Josh on the check. "I guess I'd better go and check on Donna."

Just then, Sam walked out of the bathroom, with only a towel around his waist. Once he saw that it was Mallory, instead of Donna, he was mortified.

Josh burst out laughing and Mallory was too embarrassed to even make a smart comment; she ran out of the flat, as Sam ran into his bedroom. Josh texted Donna to tell her what had happened.

When Sam remerged from the spare bedroom-fully clothed-he asked, "How is that funny?"

"The look on your face and the look on her face-it was priceless!" laughed his friend.

Sam walked over to the kettle and poured himself some more coffee, before adding, "Had I known it was Mallory, and not Donna, I would've worn a dressing gown." He sat down next to Josh, sipping his coffee, glad that he was clothed, but mortified that Mallory had seen him in such as position. "How long have you known Mallory?"

Still smiling, Josh answered, "Since I was about 4-she could've been 8-she was the same age as my sister."

"I thought Rebekah was 8 years older than you?" Rebekah Lyman was Josh's elder sister who lived in North Carolina; she and Josh weren't very close, although Sam had a feeling that they had been when they were younger and now he had apparently forgotten her age.

Looking down at his hands, Josh muttered, "I wasn't talking about Rebekah."

"What dye mean? Do you mean you have another sister, whom I've never met?" As Sam asked the question, he could see the same haunted look in his friend's eyes, which he sometimes saw, so he changed the subject. "I'm glad you introduced me to Mallory-she's about my age, isn't she?"

For a while, Josh made no response, but then he smiled and remarked, "You're still married, Sam. I don't think you should be thinking about other women yet." He was joking, but there was a serious tone in his voice.

Placing his cup of the table, Sam replied, "I've always had feelings for Mallory-ever since the first time we met. You know that, Josh."

"Why didn't you ask her out, then?"

"I was a bit intimidated when I discovered that she was the daughter-and only child-of Leo Thomas McGarry." Leo McGarry, who was an old friend of Josh's father, was one of the most powerful lawyers in the country and he was now sitting in the Senate and Josh worked for him.

Josh laughed again. "Sam, Mal's a teacher, you're a lecturer at a university. You'd do well together."

Sam shook his head. "This is strange coming from the man who's only ever had one girlfriend in his life." Ever since he had known Josh, he had only ever been in one relationship and that had ended badly.

Just then, the door was flung open and Ainsley came storming in and walked over to Josh. "How could you let Mr. McGarry say that?" She demanded, in her strong Southern accent. "How could you let him say that, Josh?"

"Say what?"

"About guns, he declared that the right to bear arms shouldn't be in the Bill of Rights! How could you let him say that on national television?"

Sighing, Josh answered, "Ainsley, Leo doesn't listen to anyone-when he wants to do something, he'll do it."

"Whilst he loses so many votes of people around the world! It's in the Bill of Rights. The Founding Fathers"-

"-Put it in in a time when they were afraid of being attacked by Native-Americans, but that threat isn't there anymore because you people killed them all off!" retaliated Josh, angry.

Ainsley stared at him, incredulous. "_You people?_ I'm sorry, where were your family whilst the Native-Americans were being whipped out?"

"They would've been in Germany; my parents moved to the United States after being held in a concentration camp!" Josh snapped, before standing up and rubbing the back of his neck, which Sam knew he did when he was stressed. "I'm sorry I snapped Ainsley."

She smiled, then asked, in a gentle voice, "Your parents were in camps, with their families?"

"Yeah-my dad was 10 when the war ended and my 8. My dad's mum, Olivia, and his younger brother-who was about 3-years-old-,named Joshua, they were both murdered in the camp. Then, my grandfather and my dad moved to America, and so did my mum's parents and sisters-so, at the time of the Native-Americans, we were not in the United States."

Ainsley stood, in complete and utter shock. With a shaking voice, she asked, "Where were you born, then? America?"

"No, I was born in Berlin; my parents and sisters were there for a couple of days and-" he stopped dead, realising that he had said 'sisters' and he knew that Sam and Ainsley would pick up on that.

Before they could ask him a question, he grabbed his coat and left his flat.

Donna and Mallory came in and Sam told them about what Josh had said; he asked Mallory if he should go and talk to Josh. Mallory said that he shouldn't, but Donna should.

Malloy and Sam were finding it very hard to look at each other without feeling very awkward. Ainsley noted this and rolled her eyes, before rolling her eyes and going back to her flat.

In the park, Josh was sitting on a bench, with his hands in his lap and he was looking down at his hands.

"Josh?" It was Donna. She sat next to him, knowing that he knew why she was there and she was prepared to give him time.

He inhaled a shaky breathe, then began, "I started seeing a physicist after my eighteenth birthday-I'd refused to before that, but my mum and dad convinced me that it was the only way to-to…move on, even though I never really will." He paused, and looked into Donna's eyes, finding warmth and genuine concern, "I had a sister who died. Her name was Joanie-she was 4 years older than me, and Rebekah was 4 years older than her. When we were young, we were all really close, like you and Sam are, but Joanie and I were…especially close."

Donna laughed slightly. "Sam and I fought all of the time when we were kids-like cats and dogs."

Josh looked off into the distance and she saw that same haunted look in his eyes. There were also tears in his eyes. "On my 12th birthday, Becky had a date and our parents had gone out for a couple of hours-so it was just me and Joanie. There was a fire-caused by a pock-corn maker and…she died."

"The house caught on fire whilst Joanie was babysitting you?" Donna asked, stunned by what she was hearing. Josh just looked down at his hands, not wanting her to see the tears which had formed in his eyes.

Swallowing, he whispered, "I ran out of the house, Donna. I left her." A single tear made its way down his check, but he whipped it away, but Donna had seen it and suddenly all of the pieces fitted; it must have been after Joanie's death that his relationship with Rebekha had deteriorated and it must have been the aftermath of her death which had caused their father to drink, and for their parents to separate for a while.

Slowly, Donna reached out and squeezed his hand. Their eyes met and Donna saw that he completely trusted him, as she did him. "Does Sam know?"

"No-I mean, he probably guessed because I always have nightmares, but I've never told him. Mal knows, but that's because she was a friend of Joanie's."

"Thanks for telling me, Josh." She whispered and she meant it. Donna knew that he wouldn't tell her brother or anyone else, because she and Josh had a special bond of trust-a bond which could not be broken.

As they walked back to Josh's flat, Donna asked, "When does Naomi get back?"

Naomi Lyman was Josh's 8-year-old daughter and at the moment, she was staying with her mum, who had once been Josh's girlfriend; the girl lived with her dad half the time and with her mum half the time and Donna, Sam and Mallory were very close to her.

"Amy's bringing her back down here tomorrow, so she'll be back soon." Amy was also the younger half-sister of Charlie and was also Jewish.

Donna smiled, then asked, "How-how old were you and Amy when you had her?" She asked the question very delicacy, because she knew that it was something about which Josh never spoke, but maybe, to her, he would open up.

"We were 19-it was the end of our first year at university. We-we separated about a month after we found out Amy was pregnant and then 5 months later, she came along-born 3 months early. We were so worried we were going to loose her, but we didn't and I couldn't live without her." He smiled and his best friend could see the love for his daughter in his eyes and that made her happy.

Flashback-7 years earlier…

It was Sam's 20th birthday and Josh and Sam were going to the party which Sam's parents had organised.

Upon walking into the house, the first thing that struck Sam was the girl sitting at the kitchen table: Mallory O'Brien-she was in some of his classes and since first meeting her, he had thought that she was the most beafiul girl he had ever seen, despite having a long-term girlfriend, Lisa.

Josh and Mallory ran to each other and hugged and Sam felt a surge of jealously pass through him; he knew that Josh and Mallory had been close since childhood. This feeling must have been evident on his face, as Mallory laughed, and remarked, "Sam, I love Josh like a brother."

Finally finding his voice, Sam asked, "What are you doing here?"

Mallory fixed him with her pierce eyes and replied, in a levelled voice, "I came here to celebrate your birthday. You don't have to bite my head off, Sam."

"I'm sorry-that sounded very rude."

"I didn't sound rude-it was rude!" Mallory snapped back and Sam could see that Josh was feeling uncomfortable.

Smiling slightly, Mallory walked over to him and asked, in a far gentler tone, "So, how's Lisa?"

Remembering about his girlfriend, Sam told Mallory how she was and how her degree was going, as Josh slipped out of the room.

The house in which Sam's parents lived in was very big. Josh knew that Sam had a younger sister, who was his age, but he had never met her. He also knew that she was at university studying Drama.

He heard crying coming from the sitting room, so he went in and saw a girl of his age, with blonde hair and blue eyes, curled up on the sofa, clutching her mobile phone in her hands. She looked destraut.

"Hey," when he spoke her head whipped around. "I'm Josh Lyman. You must be Donna, Sam's sister?"

Swallowing, she nodded and replied in a shaky voice, "Yes. I'm sorry I jumped; I thought you were Sam."

"Don't you want him to see you cry?" inquired Josh, as he sat down next to her on the sofa.

Donna placed her phone down and sighed. "Well, I was dating this guy, whom I love and I thought he said the same way, but I was wrong."

Frowning, Josh asked, "You tell Sam that, surely?"

"No, you don't understand; I was studying Drama at university and he told me he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me and I believed him and now he's broken up with me and well, he and I moved in together."

"Your boyfriend was older than you." It wasn't a question, Josh already knew the answer. He smiled slightly, then asked, "So, why don't you apply again?"

Looking slightly ashamed, Donna replied, "I don't want to go back to university."

After thinking for a minute, Josh said, "My dad owns a lawyer firm. He's always looking for interns-with little experience. I could recommend you."

Donna shook her head. "No, I couldn't do that; I would be taking advantage."

Smiling at her, he replied, "Well, you didn't ask me-I offered, so you don't owe me anything."

Their eyes locked and Josh tried to communicate that he wasn't doing this because he felt sorry for her- but because he liked her. They sat in silence, then Josh stood up and walked towards the door.

"Josh!" Donna called, in a nervous sounding voice. Josh turned around and looked at her. She smiled faintly, then whispered, "Thankyou."

He nodded, then smiled slightly and went back into the kitchen to find Sam and Mallory, leaving Donna in the sittingroom. Neither of them knew that they had just met their best friend.

Present day…

Late that evening, Sam and Mallory found themselves with only each other in Josh's flat; Charlie was spending time with his Dion and Ezekiel, C.J was working and Josh and Donna were out at the cinema. Sam and Mallory had never really had an in depth conversation.

As they sat down with a pot of coffee, Sam asked, "So, how's your dad?"

"He's good, thanks. He's staying with Josh's parents for a couple of days and then he's going to come back to Washington. Mum's in Boston and she's happy. She has a community there."

"An Irish-Catholic one?"

Smiling slightly, Mallory nodded. "Yes, she goes to church and so do I-Dad doesn't. He hasn't gone for years." She paused, then asked, "Do you believe in God?"

Sam shook his head. "No, I don't and neither does Donna." They were silent for a couple of seconds, then he stating, "Lisa and I are getting a divorce."

Instead of giving her condolences, as people normally did, Mallory looked him in the eye and asked, "Do you love her?"

"I"-

"I only ask because, at Uni, I met a boy, named Sean McCarthy-yes, he was Boston Irish-Catholic, before you ask-and I thought I loved him and we even lived together and got engaged. When he proposed to me, he said that it may be my only chance-this was about a year ago, so I was only 28-but I thought I loved him, so I wasn't offended. Then, a couple of days before the wedding, I walked out. It was before you'd moved here. I stayed with Josh and Naomi and I felt free and I realised that what I'd felt for him was a child's love." She sipped her coffee and for the first time in a while, Sam looked at her; she had pale skin, red, curley hair, she had a great personality and he was going to be divorced. Why not try to make some sort of move?

Sam chewed on one of the biscuits and began, "You know, at uni, I had a huge crush on you. Did you know that?"

A smile spread across Mallory's face and she nodded. "Yes, I knew. I asked Josh once-he denied everything, but I know him so well."

"You two are close?"

"Yes, he's like my brother."

Bitting his lip, Sam continued, "So, hyperthically, of course, if I were to ask you out, would that be okay?"

With no emotion on her face or in her voice, Mallory replied, "Maybe-if you ever got round to it."

Sam was about to say something, but they were interrupted by Josh and Donna coming in. Donna said something about flipping Josh's mattress to give the two of them privacy.

Once in Josh's bedroom, Donna asked, "Can you believe him? He and Lisa aren't even divorced yet!"

Josh sat on his bed. "Donna, Lisa cheated on him, they're getting divorced and also, Sam fancied Mal since. Well, he was 18."

Donna sat next to him and insisted, "That doesn't make any difference."

Smiling, Josh remarked, "Sam has had feelings for Mal since he was 18, okay? That's a long time and if they have a chance now, then why not give it a shot? If you were in that position, wouldn't you do the same?"

His best friend shrugged. "Well, whatever he does, I'm behind him and so are you."

"Yeah, but if he hurts Mal I won't be impressed." Josh laughed, but Donna knew that he was serious; if there was one thing she knew about her best friend, it was that he was fiercely loyal.


	2. Chapter 1: Shocks, sonograms and names

Chapter 1: Shocks, sonograms and names.

One month later…

The 7 friends were sitting in a café after a long day at work and they were all trying to relax.

Sam and Lisa were now officially divorced and he was staying with Josh and Naomi until he could find a place of his own; Charlie had offered Sam his flat for a while, but Sam had declined as Charlie had two stepsons for whom he cared. Charlie was 25, Josh and Donna's age. A couple of years ago, he had married the mother of his stepsons, but then his wife had walked out and Charlie had been granted full custody of the children. Dion was 8 and Ezekiel was 4 and Charlie loved them very dearly. He worked very hard, but his hours were adjusted.

Charlie had grown up in Washington with his dad and mum, but after his mum had died when he had been a baby, his dad had remarried and had had a baby girl, the following year-Amy, who was the mother of Naomi. There was, therefore, only 9 months between Charlie and his sister; she had been raised Jewish by her mother and he had been raised Catholic by their father, but he was now an Atheist.

C.J was a journalist and she loved her job. She had moved to Washington a couple of years before: Mallory, Charlie and Sam had turned up and she was well aware of the close bond which was shared by Josh and Donna. One of her favourite tasks was baby-sitting Naomi.

"So, C.J," Charlie began, "are you seeing anyone at the moment?"

His friend shook her head and replied, "No, I'm not. I guess I'm not really over Danny and I don't think I ever will be. Where are the boys, by the way?"

"They're at a sleep-over with some of their friends."

Smiling, C.J mused, "You know, you and Josh should just move in together-because Naomi gets on with the boys and it would help."

Charlie and Josh just rolled their eyes and chuckled slightly, then Charlie turned to his niece who was on Donna's knee, fighting to stay awake and asked, "Did you have a good time with your mum?"

The little girl shrugged her shoulders, fighting to keep her eyes open, then replied,"Yeah, I did, but I prefer it here." She yawned, then asked, "Daddy, can I go to bed?"

"Yeah, I'll take you, sweatie." Donna stood up and took the tiny girl into her arms, before carrying her out of the café; she threw her friends a look, indicating that they should follow, as she knew that her brother wanted to talk to Josh. Charlie, C.J and Mallory followed suit, leaving Josh and Sam alone.

"Donna's so good with kids," Sam mused, more to himself that to his friend, "I know she wants to have kids. I know Mum gives her a hard time-she thinks that me and Lisa was the only chance she had of having grandchildren. The woman's obsessed with grandchildren-Dad doesn't mind, as long as we're happy. Are you parents like that?"

Sensing that this conversation was leading somewhere, Josh answered, "Well, before I had Nai, Mum was really worried that she'd never have grandchildren, but after Nai was born and safe, she was happy. Dad's the same-he always really wanted to have grandchildren." He paused, then asked, "Sam, do you think that you and Lisa would've had kids if you hadn't divorced?"

Sam sat silently for a while, then replied, "Well, when we got married, we agreed that we'd wait until we were about 30. Now, I don't think I'll ever have a kid, but as long as Donna has one, I won't mind-you must know how crazy she is about babies?"

Smiling, his friend laughed, "She's my best friend. Of course I've noticed." He smiled again and Sam smiled back.

Just then, Donna came in and said, "Josh, I've just put Nai to bed; Charlie and C.J are with her."

"Thanks."

"Donna, do you have names for your kids?"

Donna smiled at her brother and sat down on the sofa next to Josh. "Yeah, I do. Estrella, after Grandma and Isabelle after Madre's grandmother." She smiled at the thought; one of the things that worried her was that by the time she found the right man whom she truelly loved, it would be too late to have children.

Knowing what his sister was thinking about, Sam squeezed her hand and whispered, "Donna, you will find someone. I know that you'll find someone. Josh, back me up here." He added, when he saw that Donna was looking very unconvinced.

"Sam's right," Josh looked her in the eye to convey his sincerity, as he spent most of his time mocking her, "you will find someone; you never know how life's going to turn out. If, ten years ago, someone had told me that I'd have an 8-year-old daughter now, I would've thought they were crazy."

Donna leaned forward and kissed him on the check and smiled. "You're such a good friend, even though you spend most of your time annoying me more than anyone ever has before."

"It's one of his many talents." remarked, smirking at his friend and he stood up and put his arm around his sister and the two of them walked out of the café. Josh watched them silently, wondering if he and Joanie would have been that close had she been alive; the last time he had called Rebekah, her husband had claimed that she had been busy, but she had never made an attempt to contact him.

The next morning…

As Sam walked into his office at work, he sighed and fell into his chair, exhausted. Last night, Donna had told him that their parents were divorcing after living separately for a couple of years; when he had asked her why she had not told him earlier, she had replied that he had been busy with getting divorced and she had not wanted to cause him anymore stress or pain.

Just when he thought his day could not get any worse, there was a knock on the door. He looked up and saw Lisa, his ex-wife.

Inhaling a deep breathe, he stood up and held out his hand to her. "Lisa, how are you?"

"I'm good thanks, Sam," she replied, as she stepped into the room, "how are you?"

They shook hands and Sam felt as if he were being electrocuted and he withdrew his hand from hers as quickly as he possibly could. "How's-er-your boyfriend?"

Embarrassed, Lisa sighed, then replied, "Bradley's good, thanks, Sam. Er-how's Donna?"

"She's good." mumbled Sam, whilst looking down at his nails; to look into her eyes was far too painful and he was worried that if he looked her in the eye, he would want to kiss her and that desire was one of the most painful feelings he had ever felt.

After a long pause of ex-husband and wife standing in complete silence, the former avoiding the eyes of the latter, Sam asked, "Lisa, why are you here?" he was aware that it sounded blunt and rude, but he was also hoping that she was experiencing the same kind of pain which he was and, therefore, would understand that he wanted to be around her as little as possible.

Lisa tucked her golden hair behind her ear, and exhaled deeply. "I'm pregnant…with your baby. I know it isn't Bradley's because of how far along I am. I'm two months along and I only started seeing him a couple of weeks before our divorce. The baby's yours, Sam. Please, say something."

For the first time in his life, Sam was completely lost for words.

Senator Leo McGarry worked in an office in Washington. After spending a couple of days in Connecticut, he had come back, seen his daughter, then gone straight back to work.

Leo walked into his Chief of Staff's office and waited for the young man to register that he was watching him.

Josh looked up and jumped. Leo chuckled, but Josh glared at him and insisted, "That's not funny, Leo!"

Still chuckling to himself, Leo sat in the visitor's chair opposite Josh and observed, "So, Mal told me that Sam and Lisa are divorced."

"Yeah-they divorced about a month ago." replied Josh, paying more attention on his work than what his boss and former mentor was saying.

Leo turned serious and addressed Josh with a serious tone. "Josh, I know of Sam's feelings for my wee girl. Let's be honest-he isn't a pro at hiding it."

Looking up from his work, Josh nodded in agreement and waiting for Leo to continue.

Leo sighed. "I guess-after what happened with Sean, Mal's been very fragile and her mother and I are worried about her; Jeanie even invited her down to Boston for a few weeks, but Mal has work, so that's not possible. I know Sam's a good guy, but I just-I just worry." He paused, then asked, "Mal doesn't…you know…share his feelings, does she?" The terrified look on his face would have been comedic had the conversation not been serious.

"No, she doesn't. Don't worry." His Chief of Staff told him, hastily, not really wanting to have this conversation.

"Mallory loves you like a younger brother, you know that? I think she sees it as her job to look after you." Leo hesitated before continuing, knowing that what he was going to say was going to cause Josh pain. "I guess she sees herself as filling in for Joanie-and Becky-in a way."

Josh looked down at the desk and tried to hide the sadness and tears which had appeared in his eyes with the mention of his elder, dead, beloved sister. He inhaled a deep breath, then stated, "Leo, like I said to Donna, I'll always protect Mal. I know what she means to you."

Leo smiled, then moved the conversation onto what he knew for Josh was safer ground. "So, Donna? She's Sam's younger sister, isn't she? Is she close to Naomi?"

Smiling slightly, Josh nodded. "Oh, yeah. My daughter loves her Auntie Donna. She's closer to her than she is to her own mother." His smile faded, as it always did when he spoke of Amy. "I try to make sure that Nai sees her mother-really I do, and she's close to Charlie. But Amy has a very busy life and her job is very demanding."

Leo, as an old family friend, knew that Amy had been Josh's first love-and so far only love-and that there was a part of him which would never be over here and would always love her, although Josh would never admit that to anyone-except perhaps Donna, whom he trusted more than anyone in the world and she him. Over the years, Leo and Josh's parents had watched Josh and Donna's friendship develop and none of them had ever seen a friendship which was so pure, deep and sincere.

"Why did you name your daughter Naomi?"

"It was Amy's grandmother's name, so it seemed appropriate. If I ever have a son, I'm going to name him Isaac." Josh and his dad's father had shared a very deep and special bond, one which even Josh's dad found hard to understand; Isaac had died when Josh had been 16-it had been the first death since Joanie's, and had, therefore, upset Josh more than it would have done otherwise. Josh was very close to his parents as well and he always had been.

"And, if you have another daughter, will she be named Joanie?" Leo asked, in a gentle understanding tone.

Josh looked up and him and Leo could see the raw pain in his eyes and he felt very guilty for bringing Joanie up; her death was the one thing Josh had never been able to overcome.

Before Leo could try to amend what he had said, Josh's assistant came to the door, saying that Sam was there to see him.

Glancing at Josh worryingly, Leo stood up and quitted Josh's office by the side door, as Sam came through the main door, as white as a ghost.

"Sam?" Josh stood up from behind his desk, guided his friend to the sofa and sat him down, before sitting down there himself. "Sam, what's wrong? Do you feel sick?"

His friend shook his head, then asked, "When-when Amy told you that she was…pregnant, did you feel sick, as if the whole world had frozen and you were trapped?"

Frowning, Josh asked, "Why're you asking?" Now, more than ever he wished that Donna was here to take care of her brother, as he was not cut out for emotion stuff.

"Lisa's pregnant with my baby." Sam whispered, the shock apart of his face. "She came to me and said she know's it's mine because she's two months along and she didn't start sleeping with Bradley 'till about a month ago."

Taking hold of his friend by the shoulder, Josh remarked, "We need to get you to Donna-she isn't a work this afternoon. Come on, let's get you to your sister." He grabbed his jacket and keys and guided Sam out of the building.

Leo saw them leave and he knew that Josh would not leave work without it being important. A couple of minutes later, he received a text message from his Chief of Staff telling him what was going on and that he would be back as quickly as possible.

At Donna and Mallory's flat (for which Josh had a key), Josh made Sam a cup of coffee and waited for Donna to come back from wherever she was.

"Sam, what did Lisa say?" he asked, as he sat down his friend.

Looking down at the cup of coffee, Sam replied, "Well, she said that she and Bradley are going to raise the baby and I can be as involved-or not- as I want."

Josh sighed. "Well, what are you gonna do?"

"No matter what I do, I'm still going to be a father for the rest of my life." Sam sipped his coffee, then continued, "I can't believe that this is happening; when we were together, Lisa and I were always safe-why has this happened now, after we're divorced? Why didn't it happen, I don't know, a year ago, and then maybe Lisa wouldn't have committed adulatory." Despite pretending that he was not bothered by the fact, Sam was still very angry with Lisa's cheating and most people knew it. Sam also knew that Josh had never really liked Lisa and he was very impressed that Josh hadn't made a sarcastic comment yet.

The door to the girls' flat opened and Donna and Mallory walked it.

Seeing that her brother was in a state, Donna dropped her coat on the floor and knelt down in front of him. "Sam, what's wrong?" She tried to make eye contact with him. Seeing him this way was making her very worried.

Mallory joined went down onto the floor, next to her best friend.

Inhaling a deep breathe and looking his sister in the eye, Sam replied, in a very clear voice, "Lisa's pregnant, with my baby and she said that she and Bradley are going to raise the baby and I can as involved as I want. The first sonogram's tomorrow and I'm not sure if I want to go or not."

Donna squeezed his hands and asked, "Well, what do you think you want to do?"

"I think my carer's over. To have a child out of wedlock, in the circles I work in, is going to be shameful."

Shaking his head, Josh snapped, "Sam, don't be stupid! I'm a single dad, I'm not married to the mother of my child and I'm the Chief of Staff to a Senator."

Sam stood up and walked over to the sink, aware that his sister and friends were watching him. "But Lisa had an affair, Amy didn't." he whispered. He then turned around and appealed to his sister. "What am I going to tell Mum and Dad? You know how traditional they are!"

Laughing slightly, Donna stood up and remarked, "Considering they're getting divorced, I don't think they can be too preachy! Plus, they're crazy about grandchildren and Madre thinks that you're her only chance at that." The latter part was not said with bitterness, but there was a hint of sadness.

"Sam, I'm Boston, Irish-Catholic and I don't care and my mum wouldn't either-although, I'd better not speak too quickly." Mallory was trying to help, but she wasn't sure if what she was saying was of any help or not.

Sighing, Sam looked down at his shoes and asked, "How am I going to be my kid's father, with Bradley there?"

"Sam, you're going to be this child's father. There's no way you can be usurped by Bradley in that sense." Donna was trying to give him as much encouragement as possible, whilst trying to convince herself that everything was going to be alright.

Sam nodded, understanding from where his sister was coming. "I'm going to go the sonogram. Can one of you come with you?" He asked; he made eye contact with Josh, as he knew that the sight of her niece or nephew would make Donna cry.

Knowing what Sam was thinking, Josh said that he would go. Sam smiled at him, relieved, then he and Josh made their way back to work.

Later that evening, Sam was sitting in Josh and Naomi's flat, thinking about how he was going to act around Bradley when he saw him tomorrow. There was a part of him which wanted to hate the man for taking away Lisa, but Sam knew that if it had not been Bradley, it would have been someone else.

"Sam, are you OK?" Sam looked up. It was Charlie and Sam noticed that he looked upset.

Sam nodded quickly and asked his friend what was wrong. Charlie sighed, and tried to change the subject. "Don't worry about the sonogram-at the end of the day, you're the baby's dad."

Sam fixed him with a look and he sighed again. "My ex-wife, she's out and she's asking to have the boys and she's their mother and I'm just their stepdad, so she'll get them."

"But you _adopted_ Ezekiel and Dion."

"But they're hers by blood and, if she can prove that she can care for them, she'll be able to have them." Charlie looked down at his hands. "Those boys are my life, Sam," he remarked in barley a whisper, "I've worked everything around them. I have no life apart from them. I haven't dated since their mother left them."

Smiling, Sam commented, "I can see why you and Josh are friends; neither of you really have lives outside of your children."

"Yeah, but Naomi's his biological daughter-Dion and Ezekiel aren't mine." Charlie snapped and Sam knew that he was stressed, as Charlie never snapped unless he was angry or upset-or sometimes, the combination of the two.

The two friends were silent for a while, then Sam said, "We'll I've made it clear to Mallory that I have feelings for her since Lisa and I divorced. Maybe you need to do the same-find someone you like and ask her out."

Blushing, Charlie shrugged slightly. "Well, I do actually have a girlfriend. She's met the boys and she loves them. Her names Zoe Brummer and she's a little younger than me, but she's so sweet and so pretty."

"How come we haven't met her?"

"I don't know; I guess I wanted to see how things went with her before she met you lot and you all scared her." He smiled to himself. "I'm in love with her, Sam. I told her so a couple of days ago and…she said the same thing. There's no feeling like it."

Thinking of the first time he and Lisa had first exchanged those words, Sam nodded and murmured, "You're right there. We have to meet her, now."

Charlie smiled and nodded; he knew that his girlfriend could handle his friends. He sighed, then admitted, "Ever since I was a little kid, I've always dreamt of being an actor. Abbi, Dad and Amy always supported me with it and I think I'd be good at it." He sighed and added, "If the boys are taken from me-which they will be, I want to be doing something which I love."

Sam smiled, then asked, "So, what's this girl's name?"

His friend smiled and answered. "Her name's Zoe Brummer. I knew her to start off with because she was a friend of Josh and Mallory and then things kind of happened. We've been dating for nearly a year."

"So, it's pretty serious, then?"

"Yeah," Charlie nodded. He paused, then added, "Amy and Abbi think I should ask her to marry me. What d'you think? I mean, we haven't been together for a year yet."

Sam chucked. "Lisa and I were together for 3 years before we got married and look how that ended. Do you talk to Amy often?"

Frowning, Charlie replied, "Of course I do-she's my sister. She always tells me about her job; she works as a political consultant for a feminist group. She always asks about Naomi." He sighed. "I think she still loves Josh and he still loves her, they have a daughter together, so why aren't they back together yet?"

Before Sam could reply, Josh and Leo entered, with Donna and Naomi behind them. The 8-year-old was clinging to Donna's hand and this made Sam smile; whilst he and the others were close to Josh, Donna was his best friend and they trusted each other implicitly and, therefore, Naomi was very close to Donna. The others always joked that Josh and Donna would end up marrying someday, but Sam didn't think so; he thought that their friendship was truly platonic and that nothing would ever change that-besides, the idea of Josh dating his little sister was an idea which he never wanted to have to consider. Ever.

"Sam." Leo called, as Donna and Naomi went over to the play-area of the sitting room and sat down. "Can I have a word?"

Confused, Sam nodded and Charlie stood up and went over to play with his niece and Donna.

"Sam, I was wondering-erm-you're working as a Law lecturer at the moment, aren't you?" asked Leo, with a certain look in his eyes which Sam didn't understand, but he was sure that Josh did. So he nodded.

Smiling like the Cheshire Cat, Leo continued, "Well, I was wondering if you'd like to come and work for me, as Josh's deputy."

For a while, Sam was standing there in utter shock, as he had no idea what to say, but Leo interrupted his thoughts. "Now, I understand that with everything that's going on, you need time to think and that's find. Take as much time as you need. And good luck with the sonogram tomorrow. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, Josh."

With that, he kissed Naomi on the head and quitted the flat.

Leaving Naomi to play with her uncle Charlie in her play area, Donna went over to her brother and Josh and asked, "What was that about?"

Sam sat down on the sofa. "Leo McGarry-one of the most powerful men in the country-asked me if I wanted to be his Deputy Chief of Staff."

"Oh my goodness, Sammy, that's great!" Donna cried and she hugged him.

"But I can't take it can I-if I do, Lisa will use it as an excuse as to why I can't see our child, although maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing." He added, more to himself than to the others.

Exchanging a look with Josh, Donna remarked, "Sam, you need to decide if you want to be in this child's life or not and you're going to have to do it quickly. Go to the sonogram tomorrow, with Josh, and see how you feel, OK?" She kissed the top of his head and whispered something in Italian, which Sam didn't understand, as he had never learnt Italian, even though it was their mother's first language.

Sam sighed, then admitted, "Another reason I don't want to take the job is because of Mallory."

"What?" Josh asked, sharing the same confused expression which Donna had.

"If I work for Leo and if something ever happened between me and Mallory, I couldn't date her. That would be so awkward!"

Instead of providing anything useful Josh and Donna burst into fits of laughter and left Sam to his worrying.

The next day, Josh and Sam made their way to G.W hospital and Sam felt as if he was going to throw up, he was so nervous.

They entered the room and there found Lisa and Bradley kissing. Sam was paralysed with the sight of his ex-wife so intimately engaged with somebody else, so Josh cleared his throat and they broke apart, severely embarrassed.

Bradley turned to face his girlfriend's ex-husband and said, in a slightly stiff voice, "Sam, hi. How are you?"

Sam just nodded and took a seat on the other side of the room. Josh and Lisa had never liked each other and Sam knew it, but he was relieved when his friend asked Lisa how her job was going.

"It's good, thanks. I love being a journalist. How's your job going?"

"Wait-what do you do?" inquired Bradley, with whom Sam was avoiding eye contact. Him and Lisa.

Glancing at Sam, Josh answered, "I'm the Chief of Staff for Senator Leo McGarry."

"Do you have any kids?" asked Bradley, who, like Josh, was attempting to break the akward atomosphere which was filling the room.

Before Josh could reply, Lisa, in a snide tone, did: "Oh, yes. He and his girlfriend were together for a year, then she got pregnant, then she gave birth. They lived together, but didn't get back together, which is strange, then after graduation , they went their separate ways."

Sam rolled his eyes and his ex-wife's account of what had happened and was relieved when Bradley asked, "So, is your child a boy or a girl?"

"A girl. Her name's Naomi and she's 8." replied Josh.

"Does she have your surname or your ex-girlfriends?" inquired Bradley, as Lisa rolled her eyes behind him.

Josh replied that Naomi had his surname and then Bradley asked if he and her mother were back together. Uncomfortably, Josh answered that they were not, then the room fell back into an awkward silence.

After about 5 minutes of nobody saying anything, Lisa announced, "Hey, Sam, Brad and I came up with some names. Wanna hear them? If it's a boy, Tyson, and if it's a girl, Willow."

Sam looked up at his ex-wife shocked and exclaimed, "Those names are crap! We decided on: Ben or Julia! They're nice names. Think about it: Tyson Seaborn! Willow Seaborn-they don't work!"

Lisa bit her lip and remarks, "Well, actually, we were gonna combine my surname with Brad's. How about this: Tyson Sherborn-Fock or Willow Sherborn-Fock?"

Josh bit his lip in order to prevent himself from laughing.

"How come he's in the title?" asked Sam, apssolty livid, pointing at Bradley.

"It's going to be my baby too."

Glaring at him, Sam shouted, "No. This baby is going to be mine. Mine and Lisa's. This is not how I had ever imagined this moment playing out! I imagined being here with my wife and it just being the two of us! But that's never going to happen, because I wasn't good enough for you!" he directed his eyes towards Lisa and for the first time in over a month, their eyes connected. Sighing, he made his way to the door and whispered, "There's no place for me in this family. Call the kid whatever you want, Lisa. I don't care. Come on, Josh."

Just then, the doctor walked in and asked how Lisa was feeling, before reassuring the four adults that she was aware of their situation.

As Sam opened the door, he heard the sound of what he knew to be a baby's heart. He looked at Josh and he could tell from the look on his friend's face that that indeed was what it was. He made his way over to Lisa and Bradley, took hold of Lisa's free hand and looked at the sonogram. For ages, the three adults stood there, staring at the baby and Sam listened to its heart and held Lisa's hand.

No matter what the situation with Lisa and Bradley was, this baby was his and nothing was ever going to change that. Lisa was two months along-with 7 months to go and already, he was feeling like a father.

After leaving the hospital, Josh and Sam made their way back to the building where they worked and they sat in the restraint there and had some lunch. Sam had accepted Leo's job offer late that night. Luckily, he had Josh to help him out.

Sam picked at his food, not really knowing what to do with it after what he had just heard and seen.

"There's no way to describe this feeling," he whispered to his friend, "I mean, I know it's going to be seven more months until the baby's here, but I already feel like a father. Is that strange?"

Smiling, Josh replied, "No, it isn't, Sam. I remember Amy's first sonogram. That was when we first saw Naomi and it was the most magical feeling."

"How did you-how did you cope with having a baby together, but not being together, 'cause I'm already finding it really hard with Lisa and the baby isn't even born yet."

Josh looked down at his plate and inhaled a deep breath. "After Naomi was born, Amy and I had a long talk and we said that, because we had a daughter together, we couldn't risk getting back together and it not working out. I could never do that to my little girl."

Swallowing his drink, Sam inquired, "Can I ask you something? Do you still love her?"

"I-she was my-my first…everything and when someone means that much to you, there's always going to be a connection with them."

Sam noticed how Josh had evaded his question. Smiling, he asked, "You never really liked Lisa, did you?"

Chuckling, his friend answered, "Well, I liked the fact that she made you happy and that you loved her, but she-she was never really that nice to Amy; she called her names, which is ironic, considering that you and her were intimidate way before Amy and I were."

The two friends laughed, then made their way back to Josh's office, as Sam needed to check something in Josh's files.

"Josh, Sam." They turned around in the doorway and saw Mallory. Seeing the look of horror on Sam's face, Josh slipped into his office.

Mallory walked over to Sam and said, "Well, Donna told me you had a sonogram this morning. How did it go?"

Finally finding his voice, Sam replied, "It was fine, thanks. Mallory, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I came to have lunch with my dad and to let you know that when you go over to mine and Donna's for dinner tonight, I won't be there." There was a look in her eyes which Sam didn't like.

Emerging from his office with the file Sam needed, her surrogate brother inquired, "Where're you going, Mal?"

Mallory smiled. "I have a date. Don't worry, Josh; Dad and Noah have vetted him, so he's fine and clean."

Laughing, Josh smiled. "Good, because you know what Leo's like."

Pursing his lips together, Sam asked, "Who's the guy?" His voice sounded rather aggressive, hence the fact that Josh waked him with the folder.

"He's a friend of Donna's. He's a History teacher. And why would you care?" That same look appeared on her face. "I already have: my dad, my mum, Josh's parents and Josh-I don't need another protective surrogate brother. Okay?"

Sam nodded and with that, she walked back down the wall.

Turning to his friend, walking into the office and slamming the door shut, Sam exploded, "She has a date! A date!"

"Yes, of course she does." replied Josh, as he sat down behind his desk, with a humouras note in his voice.

Throwing the file down on the desk, Sam exclaimed, "I made it perfectly clear that I have feelings for her. I've had feelings for her for the past nine years and I've made them clear and now she had a date!"

"Sam, I'm sorry, but you didn't make a move and she may not feel the same way. If you didn't make your intentions obvois, how can you expect her to wait around for something that may never happen." Josh sighed. "Look, I have work to do and I need to get home early to help Nai with her work, so…"

"Fine. I'll see you later. Thanks for the file."

Sam left Josh's office and went back to his own, which was two rooms away.

That evening, once Josh, Sam, CJ, Charlie and Naomi were at Donna and Mallory's flat, they had their dinner.

Afterwards, Naomi bounded over to her 'Uncle Sam' and asked, "So, is the baby a boy or a girl?"

"I don't know."

"Are you going to find out?" asked the 8-year-old, as her dad pulled her onto his knee and cuddled her.

"I don't know. I'm not sure I want to know until the birth and I have 7 months left."

Sitting down next to Sam, CJ asked, "Do you have any ideas for names?"

Donna, who was sitting with Josh and Naomi chuckled, as Josh had told her of Lisa and Bradley's name ideas.

Glaring at his sister and at her best friend, Sam replied, "Well, I was thinking along the lines of: Ben or Julia, but Lisa and Bradley are more thinking along the lines of: Tyson or Willow."

Chocking on his drink, Charlie stared at his friend. "They're not serious?"

"Oh no, they are." clarified Josh, smiling to himself. Donna elbowed him as she saw her brother glare at him.

"But they're ridiculous names." CJ protested and the others nodded in agreement, apart from Naomi, who was falling asleep in her dad's arms.


	3. Chapter 2: A promise & best friends

Chapter 2: A promise and best friends.

6 months later-December…

The snow was already thick on the ground in the first weaks of December.

Lisa was now 8 months pregnant and she only had 1 month to go. The prospect of being a father was both excited and terrifying and Sam was deciding which emotion was greater. What was making him very unhappy was the fact that Mallory was still dating the same man and he irritated Sam to the core. He was still living with Josh and Naomi, which he quite liked.

Ezekiel and Dion had been moved back to New York, to live with their mother, but Charlie was still able to see them. He and Zoe were now living together in Zoe's flat, as Charlie had sold his when his step-sons had moved out. Zoe already knew Mallory and Josh, but she was nervous about meeting the others. She loved Charlie with all of her heart and she knew that he felt the same way.

One evening-the evening before they were having dinner with: Josh, Donna, Sam, Mallory and CJ, they were sitting together watching a James Bond film.

At the end of the film, Charlie turned down the lights and snuck by into their bedroom.

"Charlie? What's going on?" Zoe asked and she turned around to see if she could see her boyfriend. When she turned back round, he was kneeling in front of her, with a ring in his hands.

Looking into her eyes, he began, "Zoe, I never thought that someone like me would ever end up with someone like you. I love you more than I can express and I hope you feel the same way. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and have kids with you." He reached up to her face and wiped a stray tear which was falling down her face. Taking her hand in his, he held up the ring and asked, "Zoe Quinn Brummer, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

"I love you too, Charlie." Zoe whispered back. She slipped down onto the floor beside him. "I love you and I want to have everything you just said with you and I never thought I'd end up with someone like you." Her voice was cracking with the tears of happiness. Looking into his eyes, she smiled. "I love you and, yes, I'll marry you, Charles Luca Diego Young."

Charlie slipped the ring onto her finger and they kissed passionately.

Zoe sprang up from the floor and declared: "I have to tell my sister and my parents and you have to do the same, Charlie. Oh my goodness, we're getting married!" They kissed again, then Charlie asked, "Where would you like to get married?"

Sitting back down on the floor, Zoe took his hand. "I know you're an Atheist and your sister's Jewish, but all of my family are Christian and I've always wanted to get married in a Church, but would that be too weird for you?"

"No." Charlie shook his head, smiling.

"When should we have the wedding?"

Her fiancé smiled at her enthusiasm and replied, "How about in January? After Sam's baby's born?"

Zoe kissed him again, then asked, "Did you ask any of your friends how to propose?"

"I asked Sam and he told me how he proposed to Lisa, but then I decided, I'd do it my own way: follow my heart."

Looking into each other eyes, they looked down at the ring, then kissed again, before lying down in front of the fire, holding each other, both waiting for the day when they would, at last, truly, be one.

The next evening, as they were preparing the dinner in Donna and Mallory's flat, Mallory asked, "Er-Donna, would it be alright if I brought Rick?"

At the mention of a man's name's, Sam, who was sitting on the sofa watching the TV, pricked up his ears and waited for his sister's response.

"Your boyfriend?" Donna asked. "Yeah, sure, I wish you'd told me earlier."

Mallory smiled and grabbed her coat. "Thanks, Donna. I'll go and get some more food." She opened the door and leaft.

Turning to his sister, Sam snapped, "Donna, why did you say her boyfriend could come?"

Rolling her eyes and sitting down next to him, she replied, "Because he's her boyfriend and it would have been very rude to say no."

"But it's Mallory's boyfriend. I'm going to find it really hard!" he threw his head back onto the sofa and sighed. "It's going to be so awkward!"

"Sam," Josh began, looking up from the newspaper, "as I said before, you didn't make a move with Mallory, so you have to deal with the fact that you didn't move and this guy did."

Sam sighed and muttered, "Thanks for your help, buddy." He paused, then asked, "So, if Amy turned up with a boyfriend, that wouldn't annoy you?"

Josh pursed his lips together and replied, in a tight voice, "Well, nothing has happened between you and Mal, so it isn't similar to my relationship with Amy at all." There was a harsh tone in his voice which made Sam feel very guilty about mentioning Amy.

The awkward silence was ended when CJ came in and Josh offered to help Donna with dinner, whilst CJ spoke with Sam.

As Josh and Donna chopped the vegetables, Donna asked, "So, how Naomi?" Naomi was spending a long weekend with her mum and her parents, then was coming home for Christmas to spend with Josh, Donna and Sam, then spending New Year's Day with Josh, Ruth and Noah.

"She's good. She's really excited about Christmas. I'm glad she's spending time with Amy's parents."

Donna smiled. "Is she close to them and your parents?"

"Yeah. I mean, she sees my mum and dad more, but she sees Charlie basically every day, so it balances out."

Throwing some of the vegetables into the pot, Donna sighed. "Sam and I are spending Christmas with you two, because we don't want to become a game in our parents' war. It'll be the first time we've never spent Christmas together. It-it makes it feel real, the fact that they're not together and it's hard."

Josh sighed. "Donna, I'm not going to pretend to understand what you and Sam are going through, but if you ever need to talk, you know I'm here."

"it's just the fact that all of the others are spending Christmas and New Years Day with their families and Sam and I aren't doing that." She paused, then asked, "When your parents separated, how did you deal with it?"

Josh threw the vegetables in the bowl, and replied, "Look, talk to Mal or CJ-their parents divorced, so they can help more than I can."

"But you're my best friend and I talk to you about anything and everything." Donna remarked, trying to convey the sincerity in both her eyes and voice. "What happened between your parents that caused them to separate?"

"It was after Joanie's funeral, my dad started to drink and he didn't stop-it was his way of coping with what had happened. My mum couldn't cope with it and, after about a month, Mum had had enough and she told him to leave. They had a big fight, blaming each other for what had happened. Then my dad said: 'Josh ran out of the house and left her. What does that say about the kind of man he'll become?'. He left the next morning. After a while, he came back and they hot back together."

Donna stared at her best friend in shock; she could not believe that Josh's dad had said that about him and from the look on Josh's face, he believed what his dad had said. "What about your other sister, Rebekah, did she help you?"

Josh shook his head and replied, "No. Ever since Joanie's death, she's hardly ever spoken to me; she blamed me too." He sighed, then added, "After Joanie's death, I couldn't sleep without having nightmares, which I still have now- about the fire, I mean. At secondary school and at university, I worked so hard to prove my dad wrong."

Donna had never known that Josh still suffered from nightmares about Joanie's death and she felt very angry with his dad for what he had said.

Over by the sofas, Sam turned down the volume on the television and turned to CJ. "Hey, CJ, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, mi amour." smiled CJ, as she swallowed her drink. "How's life as Deputy Chief of Staff to Leo McGarry?"

"It's great, but that isn't what I wanted to talk to you about. As you know, mine and Donna's parents are divorced. She and I are spending Christmas with Josh and Naomi. We were going to spend New Year's with some of our cousins from Spain, but they can't come, so we're spending it here. Lisa and Bradley are going to a country house, which freaks me out, considering she only has one month left before she gives birth to my child!"

CJ chuckled and asked, "Do you know the sex of the baby yet?"

"Well, Lisa and Bradley know, but I don't. I don't want to know until it's born. I just hope that the baby isn't named Tyson or Willow." He laughed and so did C.J. "Seriously, I hope that we can agree on a sensible name."

The door opened and Mallory came back in, followed by a very tall man. Sam and CJ stood up and went over to them.

Smiling, Mallory announced, "Everyone, this is my boyfriend, Rick Allen. Rick this is: Josh Lyman, my roommate, Donna Moss, Donna's brother, Sam Seaborn, CJ Cregg and Charlie and his girlfriend are going to be here soon for dinner."

Rick smiled and shook the hands of all of them. He turned to Josh and remarked, "You were in my class at university. You work for Senator McGarry, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. So does Sam." replied Josh, as they all sat back down. Donna sat next to him on the sofa and rested her head on his shoulder. He could tell that she was very tired.

Sam moved awkwardly when Josh mentioned his name, secretly begging that he would not have to talk to Rick, who was dating Mallory, who was looking very pretty that night.

Rick sat down and pulled Mallory onto his knee. They shared a brief kiss, which made Sam want to throw up, then he asked, "So, Josh, are you and Amy Ziegler back together?"

Josh laughed nervously and replied, "Er-no. We lived together whilst at university to look after our daughter, but as friends."

Frowning and looking very confused, Rick inquired, "What? Hang on, you and Amy have a daughter together, who would be about eight by now, and you're still not back together. Why?"

Seeing Josh's discomfort, CJ asked, "So, Rick, what do you do?"

"I'm a History teacher. I love my job and it's how I met Mallory, so it's great!" Rick smiled, then kissed Mallory again and she kissed him back.

CJ and Donna smiled; Mallory was obviously happy with Rick and she hadn't dated anyone since Sean McCarthy, so they were happy to see her with someone else and to be so happy. Donna just hoped that Sam wouldn't do anything to mess it up because of his feelings for Mallory.

There was a knock on the door. Mallory left her boyfriend's lap to go and answer the door, as she could tell that Donna was shattered. It was Charlie and Zoe.

Mallory and Zoe had been good friends for years, and Mallory knew that Charlie had proposed by the look on her friend's face and she knew that Josh, who also knew Zoe very well, would guess the same thing.

"Everyone, we have some news." Charlie announced after introducing himself to Rick. Holding hands, he and Zoe stood in front of the hearth. "We-er-we're engaged to be married!"

Zoe held out her hand and showed everyone the ring.

Hugs were exchanged, then Donna, resuming her place next to Josh, asked, "When's the wedding?"

"Sometime in late January," answered Charlie, before turning to Josh, "Obviously, Amy's going to be there. Will you be okay?"

Josh smiled at Charlie's thoughtfulness. "Charlie, Amy and I lived together until Naomi was 2 and that was just as friends. I'll be fine, honestly." He looked into Charlie's eyes to convey that he was, but the truth was that he wasn't sure. He and Amy had only ever talked about their daughter since their separation and having to talk to her something other than their daughter could be challenging.

As they sat down for the meal, Sam's discomfort and dislike of Rick was because evident. Mallory noticed this and thought that it was rather strange, as she had never seen Sam act this way around anyone before.

After a while of sitting in this uncomfortable atmosphere, Donna threw Josh a look, so he said, "Er-Sam, I need talk to you about something Senator McGarry wishes to discuss with us after New Year's."

Very confused, Sam nodded and followed Josh over into the sitting room. "What the Hell is with you?" Josh demanded in a harsh whisper. "Mal's your friend, so you will be nice to this guy. Understand?"

Before Sam could reply, there was a knock on the door. It was Leo and he looked pretty upset. "I need to speak to you." He whispered, looking directly at Josh.

Feeling nervous, Josh nodded and walked over to his mentor and boss. Sam went back to the table and the others started talking, but Josh knew that his friends were listening.

"What's up, Leo?" he asked. The look on Leo's face was really worrying him.

Leo hesitated and inhaled a deep breathe. "Josh, your mum-she's in the hospital. She's very ill and she's asking for you, Naomi, Mal and Donna. Your dad's with her now. I don't know if Rebekha knows or not."

For a while, Josh said nothing, then, when he found his voice, he said, "OK. Well, Naomi's with Amy, so she can't go to see Mum, but I can."

He turned to Donna and Mallory and called them over. He told them what had happened to his mum, but Mallory had to work, but Donna said that she could go with him.

Christmas Eve…

Josh and Donna were spending Christmas with Josh's parents in the hospital; Sam was with Amy and Charlie's parents, Naomi, Charlie and Zoe in Washington and CJ was with her mum, stepdad, brothers and nieces and nephews.

Josh's mum, Ruth, was getting better, but she had not wanted her granddaughter to stay in the hospital. Nor did she really want her son to be there, but he would not leave. Leo and Mallory had been there as well and seeing Noah happy with Leo made her happy and Mallory was like a daughter to her, as her surviving daughter hadn't bothered to show up.

Donna was worried about Josh, as he had barley slept since his mum had been admitted to hospital. She knew that he was angry that Rebekah had not turned up and she was angry as well. She had become very friendly with Noah and Ruth. She not noticed the mark which they both had on their arms and knew better than to ask: they had both been in camps.

Ruth's younger sisters, Anne-Louisa and Sarah Stein had been to see their sister as well. They had both mistaken Donna for Josh's girlfriend, but their nephew had assured them that Donna was his best friend-nothing more and Donna had told them the same thing. Once alone with Noah, he had told Donna how much she looked like Joanie and that that must be a great comfort to Josh. Donna had just smiled, as she had not been aware of the fact that she looked like Josh's dead sister.

Ruth and Noah had convinced Josh and Donna to go back to their flat to have a couple of hours rest. When they entered the flat, Josh called Naomi and Donna called Sam.

Walking into the sitting room, Donna saw a book-shaped present with her name on it. Josh appeared behind her, smiling, and whispered, "Open it."

Donna opened it and exclaimed with joy; it was a book all about lions, which were her favourite animal. As she opened it, she saw that there was a note, in Josh's handwriting, on the inside cover.

"I wrote a note inside." Josh told her, even though there was no need for this. Donna looked up at him, then looked back down at the note. It read:

'Donna,

You truly are the best friend I've ever had; I've never told any of my friends about Joanie; you're the first because of who you are-never loose that. You balance out my massive ego.

Thank you for always being there for me and for being the best friend ever.

Josh.'

With tears in her eyes, Donna closed the book and looked up to her best friend , who was watching her. As she stood up, she remarked, "You are a strange one, Josh Lyman; you spend most of your time annoying me and mocking whomever I date, then you write something like this to me."

She enveloped him in a hug, which she knew he needed and wanted. She rested her head on his shoulder and for a while, stayed there, feeling her body rise and fall when he did. "Thank you." She whispered.

Josh let his face fall into her shoulders, then brought in back up and replied, "I meant it, Donnatella." Besides her mother, he was the only one to call her by her full name and it made her feel good and special.

Their embrace ended and they stood in silence for a while, then Donna said, "I'm going to put on some dinner."

"Okay." Josh smiled. He squeezed her hand and walked out of the sitting room. Before going upstairs, he looked into the sitting room to check that she liked the book. He saw her smiling and he smiled to himself; he had made her happy and that was important.

As he walked off, Donna looked up and knew that he had been watching her. She smiled to herself. It annoyed her when people thought that she and Josh were boyfriend and girlfriend, because they were genuinely best friends and nothing more.

Back in Washington, Naomi was falling asleep on her uncle's lap. She raised her head and asked, "Uncle Charlie, can I be your bridesmaid?"

Laughing, Zoe slid down to the 8-year-old level and replied, "Of course you can, sweetie. Charlie and I both want you to."

"Am I going to have cousins?"

Charlie and Zoe exchanged an awkward look, then her uncle replied, "Well, we hope so."

Naomi cried out with glee, then made her way to bed, as she wanted to be on Santa's good list.

Once they were alone, Zoe asked, "You do want kids, don't you?"

Her fiancé turned to look at her and took her hand. "Zoe, darling, of course I wanna have kids. It's always been my dream." They kissed, then whispered that they loved each other.


	4. Chapter 3: The birth of

Chapter 3: The birth of…

A month later-January…

In early January, the snow was even thicker on the ground than it had been the month previously. By now, all 6 of the friends were back in Washington and most of them were back at work. Josh, Sam and CJ had gone back to work, but the schools had not come back from the holiday, so Donna and Mallory were not back at work. Charlie, meanwhile, had auditioned for a role in an advertisement and had got the job and he started filming when the schools resumed, which was in about a weak.

Ruth, Josh's mum, was out of hospital, but Noah, Leo and Josh were still keeping a careful eye on her.

Lisa was due to give birth any day, which meant that Sam was constantly on edge; she or Bradley promised to call him when she went into labour. The plan was then that Donna would call their parents and Lisa's parents.

Early on a Monday morning, Josh, Sam and Naomi walked into Donna and Mallory's flat to see Rick sitting on the sofa, wearing nothing but his boxer shorts, eating Cornflakes.

Sam called frantically for his sister and she came out of her room and was as shocked as her brother and her best friend. "Hello, Rick," she smiled, "would you like some coffee?"

Looking up from his bowl, Rick nodded and replied, "Yes, please, Donna. I just need to go to the loo."

When the door of the toilet was closed, Naomi turned to her dad and asked, "Why was he here so early in the morning, Daddy?"

Josh looked at Donna, who replied, "He was here to visit your Auntie Mallory, sweetie." She managed to say that before looking at Josh and bursting into fists of laughter.

Sam rolled his eyes and grumpily walked over to the sofa and sat down.

When Mallory came out of her bedroom, Rick walked up to her and kissed her and she kissed him back at full force. Both Josh and Sam felt as if they were going to be sick at witnessing this sight. Donna punched Josh, then turning to her roommate, asked, "Can I see you for a moment?"

The two young women walked in Donna's bedroom and sat on her bed. "Mallory, next time you have…a guest over, can you tell me about it?"

Slightly offended, Mallory replied, in a slightly stark tone, "I didn't think that I needed your permission. When you have your boyfriend over, do you ask me first?"

"I never have my boyfriend over seen as I don't have one," Donna remarked, gently, smiling. "Look, next time, with the risk of making Josh, me and Sam uncomfortable, just give me a heads up. "

Mallory shook her head and stood up. "No, I won't. It's my life and you're not my mother."

Standing up too, Donna sighed and replied, in a harsh voice which her friend had never heard before, "I wasn't going to bring this up unless I had to, but this is my flat. I bought it and you stay here, as friend. When you first moved in, you stayed here for free, which was fine, because you were Josh's family, you couldn't stay with him and Naomi and that was fine. So, please, Mallory, tell me next time."

Mallory was shocked by Donna's reply, but she nodded. "Alright, Donna. I'm sorry." Before talking out, she turned back and commented, "I understand why you and Josh would be uncomfortable, but why would Sam be?"

Her friend froze, as she knew that Mallory was evaluating her every move when it came to questions about Sam. "Well, you know, he's a man and you're a woman." She laughed. "I don't know. Maybe you should I ask him." She added, with a slight smile; she wanted her brother and Mallory to be together, as did their other friends, but she also knew that Sam needed to make a move and make his feelings for Mallory clear, which he had not done in the 9 years he had known her.

They went back into the kitchen. Rick had gone, as Mallory knew he would, much to Sam's relief. CJ was in the kitchen as well, with Naomi on her knee.

Unable to resist, Sam asked, "Where's Ron gone, Mallory?"

Josh and Donna avoided making eye contact, as they knew that if they did, they would burst into fits of laughter. CJ sniggered and hid her face in Naomi's hair so that Mallory and Sam wouldn't see that she was finding their conversation funny.

Rolling her eyes and sitting down at the kitchen, Mallory replied, "Well, first of all his name is Rick-not Ron, and he had to leave early because he's doing some totouring for kids who struggle with History. He's such a nice guy, so caring; he would be great with kids!"

Once again, Josh and Sam thought that they were going to throw up.

"You-er-do you want to have kids?" Sam asked, trying to keep his voice level.

Mallory walked over to the kettle and poured herself some coffee. "Yeah, I want to have kids, but I want to be with someone I love. Do you have a problem with that?"

The room was full of an awkward silence apart from Naomi who was playing with C.J's hair.

Just then, much to Josh's reliefe, his mobile phone started going off. It was Leo and he wanted Josh and Sam at the office. They grabbed some toast, said good-bye to Naomi and the others, then quitted the flat.

When they arrived, they signed in and went to Leo's office. Their boss was sitting at his desk, reading something on the computer screen. He held up his hand to them. Once he had finished, he closed the screen and looked up.

"Hey, guys. Sam, how's Lisa?"

Confused, his Deputy Chief of Staff replied, "She's due any day. She and Bradley know the sex, but I don't want to." He sighed; he hated the fact that Bradley knew and he didn't. He was also dreading what Lisa and Bradley would call the baby.

Leo told Sam to read over a piece of legislation which they had been told to read over a weak ago. Sam agreed and went to his office.

Josh sat down opposite Leo and asked, "What's up?"

Reading something on his desk, Leo answered, "There has been some trouble from womens' groups about a piece of legislation which has been passed recently. When's Charlie and Zoe's wedding?"

"In a couple of weaks. What does that have to do with anything to do with a feminist group?" Josh had a faint sick feeling in his stomach, as if a part of him knew that Leo was going to say and the look on his face confirmed that.

"Josh, one of the newly-appointed leaders of one of these groups is Amelia Ziegler, a former political advisor to a senator. I want you to meet with her, please."

Biting his lip, Josh asked, "Is there any chance that this Amelia Ziegler isn't the same Amy as my ex-girlfriend?" He sighed, thinking about how he was going to handle this. "When do I have to meet with her?"

Giving him an apoigetic look, Leo replied, "At Zoe and Charlie's wedding-I want it to be seen as something sociable, not something which we've orchestrated."

"Can't you get Sam to do it?"

Leo shook his head. "No, I'm sorry. I know this is going to be difficult for you-"

Josh cut in, annoyed. "It won't be hard at all. I dated her 8 years ago. We'll be fine, don't worry."

His boss didn't look convinced, then he added, "Oh, yeah, C.J's here to see you about this meeting with Amy- make it very clear that you're going to be meeting in a social setting." Josh sighed, then stood up and left Leo's office to find CJ in his office.

"Hey, C.J," he smiled, as he sat down behind his desk, "do you want anything to drink?"

C.J smiled back and replied, "No, I'm fine, thanks. I was here to talk you about your meating with Amelia Zielger, in an official capacity." She paused, then asked, "This Amelia, I've seen a photo of her and I feel as if I've seen her before. Have I met her before?"

Turning on his computer, Josh sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "Yeah, Amelia's Amy-Naomi's mum, my ex-girlfriend."

His friend was quiet for a while, then she confirmed, "The person you're meating with at Charlie and Zoe's wedding is your ex-girlfriend, as in Naomi's mother?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah. It's complicated. We were together for a year when we were 19, we broke up and then we found out that Amy was pregnant with Naomi. She had her and we lived together until graduation, raising Naomi together- as friends, though. Nothing else."

"Why?"

"Why, what?"

Pursing her lips together, C.J asked, "Why didn't you and Amy get back together after Naomi was born? You had a child together, so why did you not get back together?" She could see that Josh was uncomfortable, but it was something which she had always wondered.

Josh hit his computer monitor, as it was not turning on and snapped, "C.J, I really don't want to and can't talk about this right now. What do you want?"

Understanding that this was something which Josh did not discuss, C.J asked, "I asked Naomi about Rebekah and she said she'd never met her. Why is that?"

Sighing, Josh glared at C.J; he really did not want to talk about his relationship with Amy or with his surviving sister. He had not even told Donna about it, so there was no way that he was going to tell C.J.

"My elder brothers annoy me, but I wouldn't be without either of them," CJ went on, "when we were kids, they always used to tease me and then we'd resale. They annoy me, but I love them."

When Josh made no reply, CJ stood up and left the office, feeling as if she were invading his personal space.

Later that day, she went to Donna and Mallory's flat and asked if she could talk to them for a minute. The three women sat down and C.J began, "Well, I asked Josh about his relationship with Amy and he flipped out and then I asked him about Rebekah and he flipped out."

Donna and Mallory exchanged a look, as if they were trying to work out what the other knew and CJ felt as if she were being kept out of the loop on something.

After C.J left their flat, Mallory turned to Donna and asked, "How much has Josh told you?"

Very confused, Donna frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I meant what's he told you about his life." Mallory sighed. "Has he told you about his sister?"

Donna bit her lip. "He's told me about Joanie's death, if that's what you mean and that he and Rebekah aren't very close anymore. What else is there?"

Mallory looked at her hands. "It doesn't matter." Donna gave her a pleading look, so she replied, "I can't tell you too much, but there was a reason why Josh and Amy separated and that reason started when he was about 15. I can't tell you anything more. I'm sorry."

"Were you close to Joanie?"

At that question, her friend froze and Donna had the feeling that she had asked something which made her roommate very uncomfortable. "What do you mean?" Mallory asked, in a tight voice. She stood up and walked across to where Naomi was playing. She walked back. "We were close: she Josh, Rebekah, Kate and I always played together-we were all very close to age-Becky was the eldest."

Sipping her coffee, Donna inquired, "Who's Kate?"

"Kate Harper, my cousin-Dad's elder sister's daughter. She's Josh's age." Mallory sat back down, facing Donna. "Joanie and I were close. When we were 16-the year she died-we embarked on a relationship." She paused. "Yes, I'm bi. We fell in love and she died. Josh was the only one who knew and he promised to keep it a secret. I only told Dad and Mum a couple of years ago and I still think that Ruth and Noah still don't know, as Josh would never want to betray Joanie." She whipped the tears which had formed in her eyes and fallen down her face.

Donna passed her a tissue and whispered, "Mallory, I'm so sorry."

Her friend forced a smile, then remarked, in a slightly bitter voice, "After she died, like Becky, I blamed Josh; I thought that if he hadn't leaft without her, then maybe, she would have lived. It wasn't his fault, but at the time, I thought it was. Josh-after her death, he struggled and he still does. Don't tell him I told you this, but when he was 15, he was diagnosed with depression and he still suffers from it. He finds it hard to talk about Joanie. He loved her so much and she would have been so proud of him and loved Naomi so much."

She and Donna hugged, parted and held hands, in silence for a couple of minuetes. Donna knew that Mallory loved Josh like a brother now, but after Joanie's death, she obviously had not. She wondered if Josh knew that. She also wondered why Josh had never told her that he suffered from depression. But then, she reflected, she had not told him everything about her life, so what right did she have to expect the same thing from him?

At Leo's office, Leo walked into Josh's office and sat down, waiting for Josh to finish what he was working on. "Did CJ talk to you?"

"Yeah, she did." His Chief of Staff replied, in a sharp tone and Leo knew that there was something wrong with the young man whom he loved as a son.

He sighed and asked, "Josh, what's wrong?"

Looking up from his computer and at Leo, Josh answered, "C.J asked me about my relationship with Amy and…my relationship with Becky. I snapped at her; I'm just not used to talking about it."

"She doesn't know about the drugs, then?" Leo asked, carefully, watching him carefully. "Does Donna know?"

Josh shook his head. "I could hardly tell Donna-my best friend-that I had a drug addiction from the age of 15 to 19, can I? Besides, I'd have to go into the reasons and I can't do that."

"She knows about Joanie, though, doesn't she? Does Sam?"

"Only Donna knows-of cource, Mal knows, but no-one else. Naomi's too young to understand, but she does know that I had a sister who died. She's never met Becky." He added in a defeated tone. "Her only aunt and she hasn't met her because Becky still blames me."

Leo bit his lip and remarked, "Yeah, but you blame yourself."

Avoiding Leo's eyes, Josh replied, "That's different." A shadow appeared across his face, then he said, in an even voice, "I have to get this work done."

Sighing, Leo stood up and left Josh's office. After all of these years, he could not understand why Josh blamed himself for Joanie's death and he knew that Noah and Ruth did not blame him-they never had and they never would-they were just grateful that he had lived.

That evening, when Josh arrived in Donna and Mallory's flat, he could not find them and then he received a text from Donna which said:

'Lisa's gone into labour. Naomi's with us. Meet us at G.W and lock up. '

Josh grabbed his coat and locked the door as he left.

Donna, Mallory, CJ, Charlie, Zoe and Naomi were in the waiting room. Sam was in the labour room with Lisa and Bradley, waiting for the baby to arrive. Naomi was sitting on Donna's knee and she was very excited for the baby to arrive. She had never seen a newly-born baby before and she was very excited. She was also waiting for the daddy to arrive, so that she could sit on his knee.

Just as Josh arrived at G.W and he went to sit with Donna and his daughter, Zoe's mobile phone started to ring. Knowing that it should not have been on in the first place, Zoe stood up, took hold of her handbag and took her mobile call outside of the hospital.

Ten minutes later, she returned to the waiting room, looking a little pale. She crossed the room to her finace and asked, "Er-Charlie, can I talk to you?"

Charlie nodded, glancing at Josh, who shrugged and followed Zoe outside. There was still snow on the ground, but it was a great deal warmer than it had been in the past months.

The couple sat down and Zoe began. "That was my agent. She-she has a job for me, the one for which I auditioned and I got it."

"Zoe, that's great! Congratulations!" When Zoe didn't look so happy, he asked, "So, this is the break you've been waiting for, what's the problem?"

Zoe looked Charlie in the eyes. "It's in Paris for about ten months, which means that we'd have to push back our wedding and I don't want to do that, Charlie. I love you and I-I want to be with you." Both she and Charlie blushed, as they both knew to what she was referring.

Taking hold of her hand, Charlie replied, "Zoe, we're gonna be fine. Go to Paris-Hell, I'll go with you and when we come back, with you as a famous film star-we'll get married and you'll be Zoe Brummer-Young and we'll make loads of little Brummer-Youngs, so our parents can be grandparents and our sisters aunts."

Zoe smiled at the idea of her and Charlie having children. They hugged and kissed. When they parted, with their faces close together, Zoe whispered, "Thankyou, Charlie. I don't know that I've done in my life to deserve you."

"By being yourself." replied her fiancé, in a similar tone, holding her close to him. They stayed in that position, tangled in each other, then stood up and went back into the hospital, both thinking about how they would be feeling when it was their baby who would be coming into the world.

Leo was sitting in his office, trying to focus on a report which has very boring, when his assistant, Margret, knocked on his door and announced, "Leo, there's someone here to see you."

Grateful of the distraction, Leo looked up and asked, "Who is it?"

"Well, her name is Catherine-Françoise Harper. Does that name ring a bell?"

Her boss burst out into fits of laugher, before telling her: "That's my sister, Josephine's daughter, Kate. She's an NSC Advisor to the President. Send her in." Margrette left the office and Leo sat back in his chair. He knew that his niece had suffered a hard time recently, after her husband's death, but he did wonder why she had come to see him in her holiday, as opposed to going to see her mother and brothers, all of whom lived in Boston.

The door opened and Kate, who was Josh and Donna's age, entered the room, in a suit, with her hair tied back into a ponytail. Leo smiled as he saw how much she looked like her mother.

"Hey, baby." He stood up and embraced his niece, whom he loved like a daughter. "How are you?"

Undoing her jacket, Kate smiled warmly. "I'm good, thanks, Uncle Leo. How are you?"

"Can't complain. I'm a Senator of the United States of America." He paused and added, "I was sorry to hear about Will, Kate. I can't even imagine how you're feeling."

Kate sat in a chair and looked down at her hands. "Thankyou, sir. He died doing what he loved. I only hope that when I go, people can say the same thing about me." She smiled briefly, thinking about her late husband, to whom she had been married since she had been 20 years old. "So, how's Mallory?" She and Mallory spoke almost every weak, but she always liked to ask.

Leo smiled. "She's great, thanks. I cannot believe that you're NSC Advisor to the President. I told Josh and he couldn't believe it!"

Inhaling, Kate frowned. "Josh? Josh Lyman? He lives in Washington?"

"Yeah. He lives here with his daughter. He's my Chef of Staff."

His niece smiled slightly, then asked, "How-how is he? Erm-I only ask because I haven't seen him since Joanie's funeral?" She looked down again at the mention of her former best friend; she and Joanie had been very close friends and, unknown to Mallory and Joanie, she had known of Mallory and Joanie's relationship. She and Josh had been close friends as well.

Leo smiled at his niece's obvious loyalty to a man whom she had not seen since she had been 12-years-old. "He's great, Kate. He has an 8-year-old daughter."

"He has a daughter. Is he married?"

Shaking his head, Leo looked back at his monitor and answered, "Er-no. He and his ex had their daughter when they were 19 and Josh has custody. She's a lovely girl. I love her so much!"

Kate smiled to herself; the idea of Josh as a father made her happy. Leo knew that, as a 12year-old, she had fancied her best friend's younger brother, but he assumed that those feelings were long gone.

He was wrong, although Kate did not relise it herself, yet.

At G.W Hospital, Josh, Donna, Mallory, Charlie, Zoe, CJ and Naomi were still waiting for the baby to be born. Meanwhile, Sam was in the room with Lisa and Bradley and trying to prevent himself from killing his ex-wife's partner.

Donna's mobile phone rang. She went outside to answer it and Josh followed her, leaving his daughter with Mallory, as he wanted to ensure that Donna was alright, as he expected that it was her mum or dad.

"Madre, don't worry. The baby hasn't come with," Donna was saying into the mobile phone, in an almost pleading voice. Her face fell when her mother said something and her best friend could tell that she was close to tears. "What do you mean this might be your only chance? I'm only twenty-five, I'm not even thinking about having babies yet, ok?"

Just then, a mother with two babies passed and tears fell down Donna's face. Josh slipped the mobile out of her hand and turned it off. Donna whimpered, desperately trying not to cry. Josh put his arm around her and held her in a tight hug, as she nuzzled her face into his neck.

When they parted, Donna sat down on the bench and Josh sat next to her, putting an arm around her, in order to try to comfort her. "I really do want to have children, I'm sure you've guessed," Donna stated, in a forcibly even voice, "I've-I've always wanted them and, for some reason, my parents are convinced that I'll never get married and have kids." She laughed, bitterly. "I don't know why. I mean, granted, I've only ever had one boyfriend and that ended in disaster, but I-I've always sought out serious relationships, probably because of my wanting to have children."

Josh smiled slightly at what she was saying and looked her in the eye. "I tell you what: if neither of us are married by the time we're 30, which, let's be honest, with my dating record is very possible, how about you and I get together and have a baby?"

Donna burst into fits of laughter. "I'm sorry, it's a lovely suggestion. It's just-it's you. You're my best friend and you're not boyfriend material!"

Laughing himself, more out of embarrassment than anything else, her friend inquired, "What do you mean by that?"

"I-I just mean that you're Josh, the guy who annoys the Hell out of me and the guy I go to when I'm feeling down and.." Donna stopped, as she remembered that was what she had said regarding her ex-fiancé, before they had been together. She forced a smile and Josh did the same, but there was something nagging in the back of his mind.

"You're a great friend, Donnatella." He whispered, looking at her with sincerity in his eyes.

They hugged and Donna whispered, "Thankyou."

They parted, but the two friends stayed outside for a while, just enjoying the company and assurance the other gave them.

Lisa woke up and looked around the room. "Where's Bradley?"

Sam walked over to her and answered, "He's going be back soon. The good news is the baby's nearly ready to come out."

"But I don't want you to be here-I want Brad to be here!" Lisa snapped. She bit her lip, as she knew that there was a part of her that did not believe that.

Her ex-husband sat down next to her and made no reply to what she had said.

The doctor came in and told them that the baby was coming and that Lisa should start to push. Lisa grabbed Sam's hand and started to push.

Five minutes later, they heard the sound of a baby cried. The nurse wrapped it out and then passed it to Lisa, who held her baby in her arms.

Sam sat back down in the chair, breathless, unable to believe that he was a father. "It's a girl. She's beautiful." He whispered and Lisa looked up at him.

Acting on instinct, he leaned in and kissed her and she kissed him back. Their lips parted and they stared at each other for a while, then Sam stood up and said that he was going to tell the others.

He in fact was going go and find Josh and his sister, ignoring his other friends as they called his name, wondering what was going on, but he couldn't find Josh and Donna, so he went back to the others and told them that the baby had been born.

Upon returning to the room, he heard Lisa saying: "Bradley, he and I have a baby together. Don't you think we should try to make that work?"

"Fine, but know this: when he lets you down and you give up, I'll be here, for you and the baby."

Sam felt a surge of range at Bradley's implication that he couldn't look after his own family, but a part of him wondered if he was right and that was what worried him.

An hour later, the others were in the room and Donna was holding her newly-born niece in her arms. She and the others had picked up on the tension in the room, but they had decided to ignore it.

"What are you going to call her?" inquired Josh, who was holding Naomi in his arms, as she was very tired.

There was silence, then Bradley suggested, "How about Deni? Deni Seaborn?"

Lisa turned to him and asked, "Are you sure about the surname?"

Glancing at Sam, Bradley answered. "Yes. Whilst, in the future, I may love her as if she's my own, the truth is, she isn't and she never will be." He looked directly into Sam's eyes and there was an understanding between the two men, once which Sam's sister and friends noticed.

Sam took his daughter into his arms and smiled down at her. "Hey, Deni. Yes, that's you. You're Deni Seaborn."


	5. Chapter 4: As things were or move on?

Chapter 4: As things were or move on?

After leaving the hospital, all of the friends made their way back to Donna and Mallory's flat.

As they walked, Sam caught up with Josh and Donna and asked to speak to them alone, as they walked, walking them away from Mallory, as he did not want her to hear this.

"Guys," he told them in a hushed voice, "I have a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Donna asked. She and Josh slowed down so that Sam could catch up with them.

Sam told them about what had happened after Demi's birth and the conversation he had overheard between Lisa and Bradley, after which point, he asked, "Well, what should I do?"

"Well," Josh began, "do you trust her? I mean, she cheated on you with Bradley when you were still married."

Donna nodded. "I agree. I think you shouldn't because you could end up getting hurt again and you could hurt Demi."

This was not what her brother had wanted to hear and he protested: "But I love her, I'll always love and I'm not getting anywhere with Mallory. Also, we have a baby together. Is that not a great reason to get back together? Josh, you agree with me on that, surely?"

The three of them stopped working and Josh looked at Sam very intently. "I think that is the reason why you shouldn't get back together." When Sam threw him a strange look, he expanded. "After Naomi was born, Amy and I-Amy and I were really close to getting back together, because of the fact that our daughter had been born, it's a natural response to having a child together. But, aside many other reasons, one of the reasons why I didn't ask Amy out again, was because if-if we'd got back together and it hadn't worked out, it would have hurt Naomi and I could never do that to my daughter."

Donna looked down at the ground, remembering what Mallory had said about the reason Josh and Amy had separated was to do with what had started when Josh had been 15. She wondered if it was to do with the depression, but that made no sense.

Sam sighed, in a defeatist manner and admitted, "Yeah, I agree. I would never want to hurt Demi, but it-it's Lisa. I mean, she's my-she and I were everything to each other."

"And at 18 and until we broke up, Amy and I were the same, but things change. Sam, you can't go back into the past and pretend that things are the same as they were when we were younger, because they aren't! You just have to accept that and so do I!" Josh stormed off and walked away.

Sam made his way back to Donna and Mallory's flat, whilst Donna went to find Josh and find out what was wrong.

He was sitting on a bench and she sat next to him and asked, "What's wrong?"

Josh shook his head. "I don't know. I guess, raising Naomi alone is getting to me. I guess I feel as if Amy abandoned us."

His best friend squeezed his hand. "Josh, why did you and Amy break up when you were 19?"

Looking down at his hands, Josh inhaled a deep breathe and squeezed Donna's hand. "When-when I was 15-3 years after Joanie died-I was diagnosed with Depression. Shortly after that, I-er-I got addicted to drugs. I know, it's bad. I stopped when I was 19, just before Naomi was born, but that was why Amy broke up with him."

"She broke up with you because of your drug abdication?" Donna asked, unable to hide the anger in her voice.

"I can't blame her," Josh forced a smile, "I was unstable, so she broke up with me. I can't blame her, even though it hurt. I did end my abdication."

"Did Amy know that?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah, but it didn't make a difference. She may have loved me once, but she doesn't now."

Donna bit her lip and asked, "Do you still love her?"

Sighing, Josh rubbed his hands together and replied, "I think until we truly finish what we started, I will always have very strong feelings for him. Leo said I had to met her for work and I'm worried I won't I be able to do it, because of who she is and what she meant to me."

The two friends put their arms around each other in order to protect the other from the icy wind which had began to pick up. They stood up and made their way back to Donna and Mallory's flat, both worried about what Sam was going to do regarding his relationship with his ex-wife.

Naomi ran over to her dad and Donna when they came over through the door and Donna said that she would put on some dinner for all of them. It was nearly 7o'clock, after all.

As she sorted out some dinner which would suit all of them, as CJ was a vegetarian, the others sat down on the sofas and chairs and Naomi sat on Mallory's knee. Charlie and Zoe sat in a chair together, entangled with each other, looking very happy together. CJ and Sam sat together on the floor and Josh was sitting on the sofa, and Donna knew that he had saved her a space next to her. She also knew that he was watching Charlie and Zoe longingly, wishing that he had that with someone. She knew that because she was doing the same thing, as she was preparing dinner.

There was a knock on the door and Mallory stood up to answer it. At whomever it was, she squealed and pulled the younger woman into a tight hug. Her friends turned to watch her and the stranger.

Mallory turned to face them, with her arm around the other woman. "This is Kate Harper-my cousin."

Kate held out her hand to Donna. "It's very nice to meat you."

Taken back by the hand shake, Donna just smiled and asked, "So, how long are you in town?" She guessed that Kate worked in the military from the way by which she conducted herself.

"I've been transferred here, permanently. I just need to find a place to stay. I love Uncle Leo, but if I lived with him, I'd kill him."

"I know the feeling. I lived with him for nearly 21 years." muttered her cousin.

Charlie stood up and, after shaking her hand, said, "Well, Zoe and I are going to Paris for about 10 months. If you want, you could rent our flat."

Kate smiled showing her gratitude. "That would be great, thank-you. By the way, my full name is Catherine-Françoise, but I like to be known as Kate." Her eyes suddenly fell onto Josh and his eyes onto her.

There was silence, and Josh's friends looked between them; there was obviously some form of attraction between the two of them, even though they did not seem to be aware of it. It was Kate who broke the silence, by asking: "Josh, can you help me take boxes out of my car?"

Josh nodded and followed her out of Donna and Mallory's flat.

The two old friends walked together in silence, until Josh asked, "So, how's your mum?"

"She's fine. I mean, my dad's death still hurts her, but she's getting better." Kate smiled bitterly and added, "I can't believe it's been two years since Dad died. How are your parents?"

Josh smiled, too and they sat down on a bench by the car park. "They're great thanks. My mum still keeps nagging me about settling down and getting married. I thought that she would stop this when she had a granddaughter, but obviously not." He laughed bitterly, then, in a more serious tone, added, "I was sorry to hear about Will. You and he were together for ages, weren't you?"

Kate looked down at her hands, then murmured, "Actually, my relationship with Will wasn't what my family thought it was." She looked into his eyes. "I trust you. We married when we were 20 and we were happy. Then, a year later, I found out that he'd been having an affair. We legally separated and were until his death. The day before his death, I started to file for a divorce against him after being separated for the past four years, but then he died and I had to play to role of 'the devastated widow.' He had an affair because I didn't want to have kids. Now, I realise the problem was I didn't want to have his children." She sighed, then asked, "What happened between you and your daughter's mother?"

"Well, we were together for a year, then we found out that she was pregnant, but she broke up with me. Six months later. Naomi came along. After we graduated, I moved to Washington with Naomi and she sees Amy occasionally. It's for the best."

"Do you still love her?"

Instead of giving her the answer of 'yes', Josh replied, "I'd be lying if I said I won't always feel some sort of connection with her, after everything we went through. I love my daughter." He smiled at the memory of being told that her life was no longer in danger.

Kate bit her lip and asked, "Have you dated anyone since Amy?" There was a look in her eyes; one which Josh had seen before, but he wasn't sure where, and he replied, "No, I haven't."

There was a comfortable silence when they were studying each other. Josh knew that he had feelings for Kate. "Well, we should get your stuff out of the car." He broke the silence, smiling, in an attempt to control his feelings.

They unloaded the car. As they were walking back with boxes in their arms, Kate stopped and remarked, "By the way, just for a piece of information, when we were 12, I had a crush on you. I just I'd let you know that." With that, she smiled and walked away, leaving Josh wondering what to do. He couldn't really remember how his relationship with Amy had started.

Flashback-12 years earlier-Boston…

Kate, at 12, was trying to get to sleep, but it was hard, as her three elder brothers were playing football in their bedroom, which was next to hers. Even though it was early morning, she was trying to get some sleep.

A couple of hours later, when the family were having breakfast, there was a knock on the door. Kate's mum, Joesphine, went to answer it and saw that it was her brother, Leo, looking very tired and upset about something.

"What wrong?" His elder sister asked him, genuinely concerned about her brother.

Leo shook his head and replied in a tone so that Lucas, Michael, Joseph and Kate couldn't hear. "It's Joanie-Noah and Ruth's daughter. There was a fire and she was trapped inside. Josh is alright-physically at least. God knows how he is mentally." He swallowed. "I just thought you should tell Catherine-Fracioise, considering she and Joanie were close." Josephine could tell that he was tired, as he never told Kate by her full name, unless he was angry or tired.

The four children watched, as their mum gave their uncle a hug and then walked back into the kitchen, giving their dad a serious look, which made them worried.

After whispering something to her husband, Josephine turned to her sons and asked, "Boys, would you excuse us? Your father and I need to speak to Kate for a minuete."

"Is Kate in trouble?" asked Joseph, who was 14, the closet in age to Kate. Luca was 18 and Michael was 16.

When the boys had left, Josephine sat down next to her daughter and her husband sat next to her, taking hold of Kate's hand.

Sensing that there was something wrong, Kate asked, "Mum, Dad, what's wrong? What did Uncle Leo tell you and why was he so upset? Is there something wrong with Mallory or Auntie Jeanie?"

He parents glanced at each other, then her dad replied, "No, they're fine, Katie. It's Joanie."

Kate froze and asked, in a breathless voice, what had happened. Her mum and dad told her and she sat there, completely stunned and shocked by the death of her friend.

At the wake, after Joanie's funeral, which was held in Isaac Lyman, Josh's grandfather's house, Kate saw Josh sneaking out of the living room and up to his bedroom, so she decided to follow him.

He was sitting on his bed, with his head in his hands. Kate sat down on the bed next to him and asked, in a gentle voice, "How are you?" She rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry-you probably hate people asking you that."

Josh swallowed and replied, "I don't know how I feel. Dumb, I guess." He paused, then added, "Kate, I-it was my fault. I wanted pop-corn and she made it and it went on fire. I-I ran out of the house and left her."

Kate took hold of his hand, which made her feel as if electricity was running through her body, but she hid it and asked, "Have you talked to your parents about this?"

There was silence, then Josh shrugged. "No. I can't."

He was close to tears, so Kate enveloped him into a hug, which once again, shot a bolt of electricity through her body. "Josh, if you ever need me, I'm here for you. I am now and I always will be." Part of her wanted to lean forward and kiss him, but she knew that that would be inappropriate under the circumstances, so she kept hugging him.

Present day…

A weak later, Kate was moved into Charlie and Zoe's flat and they were on their way to Paris.

Meanwhile, Donna, CJ, Mallory and Sam had noticed the chemistry between Josh and Kate and they were all wondering what was going to happen. In terms of his own love life, Sam had been avoiding Lisa for the past weak, but he knew that he would have to face her, as he wanted to see his daughter, whom he loved more than anything in the world.

It was a Saturday night. Naomi was with Amy's parents and CJ was working was working and Mallory was helping her. Rick, Mallory's boyfriend, was going to go and help them out later that night, in order to spend time with his girlfriend.

Walking into Donna and Mallory's flat, Josh and Sam, who had just finished work, sat on the sofa, exhausted. Josh had told Leo about Charlie and Zoe's post-poning their wedding, and Leo had told him to meat up with Amy when they had their wedding, which he still did not want to do.

Donna came in and asked her brother and best friend if they would like to go and see a film at the cinema with her. The former said that he would, but Josh said that he was very tired and he was going to have an early night. Subsequently, Donna and Sam collected their coats and quitted the flat, not bothering to lock the door, as they knew that Josh was going to be there for a while, as he was going to call Naomi to say goodnight. When she was with her grandparents, it was very hard for him, because his entire life was worked around her and, besides her, he had no social life besides her and her friends' parents.

As Josh made himself some beans on toast, the door opened. It was Kate. She laughed. "Is that your idea of a descent dinner? Trust me, after a busy day, you need a proper meal-not that crap! I tell you what, we'll make a meal and have it here, together. How does that sound?"

Just as Josh was about to reply, his beaper went off and at the same time so did Kate's. They both reached for their mobile phones.

Once they both knew where they wanted to go, they both picked up their coats. At the door, Kate turned to Josh and remarked, "Thanks for the offer of dinner, Josh. We should do it some time, you know, together." She smiled, then opened the door and leaft Donna and Mallory's flat.

A couple of hours later, Josh was sitting in his office, reading over memos written by his staff regarding the national crisis which was occurring. He had called Naomi as soon as he had arrived to say goodnight and to tell her that he loved her.

There was a knock on his door. It was his assistant, who said, "Josh, the Deputy National Security Council Advisor is here to see you, regarding the situation."

Josh nodded, not really thinking about what she had said.

"Hey, Josh Lyman." He looked up and saw Kate standing in the door way. She laughed at the look on his face and continued with her formalities. "I'm Commander Catherine-Françoise Harper, the NSC Advisor to President Elliot."

"Well, er, Commander Harper, what can I do for you?" asked Josh, standing up and preparing a chair for her, slightly unsure of what to do in this situation.

Kate sat in the seat opposite Josh, resting her shoulder on her knee. "Josh, you can call me Kate. I hate my full name. I don't know why my parents gave me such a ridiculous name." When he didn't laugh, she said, "Well, I came to ensure that you had been briefed so that you can brief the Senator tomorrow."

Locking his computer, Josh nodded and forced a smile. "Yeah, I have been briefed, thanks, Kate."

There was a silence, then Kate said, "You know, we can go home now."

The two of them made their way back to Kate's rented flat and made themselves a simple dinner. Whilst they were waiting for their dinner, they both sat with their laptops on their knees, typing up reports, in complete silence.

When the stove boiled, Josh walked over to it and checked that it was the right temperature. He told Kate as much and she walked over to check.

As she put the spoon back into the pot, she and Josh made eye contact. For a while, neither of them moved, then Kate leaned in towards him and kissed him on the lips and he kissed her back. They both closed their eyes, trying to remember when they had last felt so happy.

When they finally parted, Josh and Kate both laughed at what they had just done, then Josh asked, "Are you busy tomorrow night, then?"

Trying to hide her glee, Kate replied, "I shouldn't be. Why?"

"I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to-er-go for dinner or something?" Josh laughed at the end of the sentence, as this was very embarrassing.

Smiling, Kate nodded. "Yeah, that would be great." She kissed him on the check, then he grabbed his coat and quitted her flat.

The next morning, Kate went to Donna and Mallory's flat as they were having breakfast and told them that she and Josh had kissed the night previously.

Donna and Mallory squealed with excitement and asked her about what had happened exactly.

That evening, at 6o'clock, Josh dropped off Naomi with Donna and he picked up Kate and they made their way to a restraunt Earlier that evening, he had told his daughter what he was doing with Kate and she had been very happy that he was dating someone besides her mother.

The restraint to which Josh and Kate went was very quiet. They sat together at a table and ordered their dinner.

When their food came, Kate asked, "Have you told Naomi where you are tonight?"

"Yeah, I have."

"How was she with the fact that you're dating someone?"

Josh laughed. "No, she's very happy that I'm dating someone besides her mother. She really does like you, you know."

Kate raised her eyebrows in surprise. "She likes me? Why? Aren't I very different from her mother?"

Biting his lip, Josh answered, "Naomi doesn't really know Amy. I mean, she sees her and she sees her grandparents, but she doesn't know her well. It isn't that Amy doesn't love Naomi, but she thought that she couldn't be a good mother."

There was silence for a while, then Kate remarked in a quite voice, "I really want to have children, you know."

"I thought you said you didn't."

"No, I said I didn't want to have Will's children." She blushed, then sighed. "We should probably tell Leo about us, just so he knows."

Josh nodded. "I agree, but we need to know what we're going to tell him." He said, with a slight smile.

Kate smiled at the look on his face. "Well, we tell him that we're dating and we're serious-we're not just fooling around. That is right, isn't it? We're not just fooling around?"

Taking hold of her hand, Josh looked into her eyes and replied, "Of course we are."

He leaned in and they kissed again, this time it was a deeper kiss and Kate could feel the happiness inside of her growing with every kiss that she shared with Josh and she knew that Josh felt the same way about her.

At the same time that evening, Sam knocked on Lisa's flat door. She opened it and he walked inside. He looked over at Demi, who was sound asleep and that made him feel far more comfortable.

Sam turned to his ex-wife and said, "Look, Lisa, we need to talk."

"No, we don't." Lisa smiled and kissed him. He kissed her back. Lisa grabbed the baby-monitor and they made their way into their bedroom. Neither of them were thinking about what they were doing; they were just following their instincts.

It was just as they had been when they were 18-years-old.


	6. Chapter 5: Relationships

Chapter 5: Relationships.

Later that evening, Sam made his way back to Donna and Mallory's flat to find that all of his friends were there. He was surprise to see Josh and Kate there, as they had had a date that night, but then it was Josh, so he hadn't expected anything more from him.

"Hey, Sam, what's up?" Josh asked, as Sam entered. He and Donna were sitting together and Kate was sitting on the chair next to them. One of the things he liked about Kate was that she wasn't clingy like Amy had been, she did not always need to sit with him to know that they were a couple.

Sam sat down next to C.J and sighed. "I have no idea what to do! I am so confused!"

"With Lisa?" Josh asked, who knew very well where Sam had been and what he had done.

Frowning, Kate asked, "Hang on, isn't Lisa your ex-wife? Why on Earth would you be thinking about her?"

Sam rolled his eyes and received a glare from his sister. He sighed and replied, "Yeah, she is. We divorced because she had an affair and then she gave birth to my daughter. We kissed after Demi was born and I've just been over there and we, you know."

Donna and Kate stared at him in disbelieve. Donna wanted to ask him how he could be so stupid, but was not in her nature to ask her brother such a question, but Kate did. "How could you be so stupid?"

"Why is what I did stupid, Kate? I followed my feelings? I did what I've wanted to do since we divorced, what's wrong with that?" Sam demanded, angry that someone whom he barely knew was telling me what he had done was wrong.

Sighing, Kate replied, "Sam, she cheated on you and now she's cheating with you. How can you trust her again? That's what a relationship is built on. Do you have no self-respect?"

Sam stood up and shouted at her, "You know what, I did not come here to be lectured at by someone I hardly know. You don't know what you're talking about, Commander!"

"Yes, I do!" retorted Kate, standing up, in an angry tone, but she was not shouting. "My late husband cheated on me about a year into our marriage. When I found out about it, I filled for a legal separation and it was granted! For the next 4 years, we were legally separated and I stayed away from him as much as I could. We had to live together when my parents and aunts and uncles came, but apart from that, I lived in a little flat to stay away from that cheating scumbag, whilst he was having an affair. I never trusted him again-he betrayed me once and that was it! I was about to file for a divorce when he was killed in action and I had to play the role of the 'grieving widow', but I didn't really love him. Now, how can you trust your ex-wife again?"

"Because I love her! She was my first everything!"

"Well, Will was mine too and I wish I'd never got involved with him. I regret it so much!" Kate glared at him. "Sam, how can you be so desperate? So, she may have been your first-whatever, but you need to move on!"

Sam walked past her, grabbed his coat and slammed the door shut.

The silence echoed through the sitting room, then Josh asked Donna, "Did Naomi get to sleep alright?"

"Yeah, she did. I read a story to her and she told me off because it wasn't how 'Daddy reads it'."

Josh bit his lip and smiled at his best friend. "I'm sorry about that, Donna."

Donna smiled. "It's fine, Josh, I love her to bits. I would adopt her if I could." She laughed to herself, then Kate asked, "Donna, do you want to have kids?"

"Yeah, I do." Donna looked down at her hands and felt a little sad that she feared that she would never be able to have children. The idea made her ache, as she had always wanted to have children; she had even selected names for her children when, if, she ever had them, which she desperately hoped she would, one day, when she was with the right person, with a man whom she loved and a man who wanted to have children as well.

"What about you, C.J," Kate asked, "would you like to have kids?"

CJ bit her lip and replied, "Yes, but not as much as Donna. If I don't have them, it wouldn't be the end of the world." She didn't mean it to sound as it came out, but it came out as a little harsh and Donna took it that way, as she stood up and went to her bedroom.

Josh stood up and knocked on her door and she let him in and she cried into his shoulders.

As he held her, he whispered, "Remember what I said before Demi was born-about us having a baby together if neither of us are married when we're 30." This made Donna laugh and she hugged him, in order to show her gratitude towards him.

Sam knocked on the door of what had been his and Lisa's home and waited for her to answer. She answered, with Demi in her arms.

Sam entered the house and took his daughter in his arms, holding her close. She was so tiny and he could still hardly believe that for the rest of his life, he was going to be a father to this baby, who would later grow into a young woman.

He placed Demi in her coat in Lisa's bedroom, then led Lisa into the kitchen. "Lisa, we need to talk."

Lisa made two cups of tea and they sat down at the kitchen table and she began: "Sam, I love you and I love our daughter and I think that we should give our relationship another chance. Can you do that?"

Her ex-husband bit his lip and replied, "I love you too, Lisa, and I want that too, but how can I trust you? What if something happens and we end up hurting Demi?"

Taking his hand, Lisa smiled and whispered, "Well, this time, my darling, we'll be different: better."

"What about Bradley?"

Lisa shook her head and murmured, "You are my first and true love, Sam. You always will be." She leaned in and they kissed passionately and Sam knew that it was her way of telling him that she loved him and that, this time, she would be faithful to him, no matter what.

One month later…

In the month that had passed, and, having no Charlie and Zoe was very strange for their friends. Josh had heard from Charlie and Zoe and Mallory from Zoe and they were both very happy in Paris and they had both managed to successfully audiotion for acting jobs, which made their friends very happy for them.

Sam had moved back into his old house with Lisa and Demi. Their daughter was growing very well for her age and she was looking more and more like her mother every day, which made both of her parents very happy. They were also very happy that they had been given a second chance: a chance to be able to raise their daughter together, as they both wanted and it gave their relationship another chance, as they both deeply cared for each other. Sam knew that Josh, Donna and Kate did not approve of his being back with Lisa, but he also knew that Josh had never liked Lisa, so it didn't surprise him. He had been surprise by his sister's reluctance, as she and Lisa had always been close, but he did also understand from where she and the others were coming.

Leo, also, was not in favour, but that was because of the political ramifications of Sam dating his ex-wife, as opposed to his being worried about Sam's getting hurt, although, Sam guessed that he was also worried about that.

Despite being back with Lisa and being very happy with her, Sam still found himself feeling very jealous of Mallory's boyfriend, Rick, which made no sense to him, although he did know that he still possessed feelings for her.

One Monday evening, after spending hours doing marking, Josh and Donna were making their way to a shop, when they were stopped by a smiling, good-looking young man, who looked about their age. He had dark hair and slightly tanned skinn and dark eyes.

"Excuse me," he had a Canadian accent, which Donna identified instantly, as she was Canadian, "Are you Donna Moss?"

Studying the man, Donna nodded. "Yeah, I am. Who are you?"

The man laughed nervously. "Donna, I'm Joe Quincy. We always sat together in English Lit and History at secondary school, remember. My mum was our English teacher?"

A smile spread across Donna's face; at secondary school, she and Josh had been best friends, although she had always suspected that he had fancied her, until he had started to date Clara Rosen.

They two friends hugged and the three of them sat down, although Josh felt as if he were intruding of something which should be private.

"So, how are? What are you doing now?" Joe asked, as he ordered the three of them a cup of coffee.

Smiling, Donna replied, "I'm a secondary school History teacher and I love it! What about you?"

"I'm a lawyer." Joe replied, as the coffee came and he drunk from his cup and Donna saw a wedding ring on his finger, so she asked, "You're married, then?"

Joe's face fell slightly. He sighed and answered, "Well, I was. Clara died a couple of years ago. What made it easier was having Nicolas and Peter, our sons."

Trying to cover up Donna's discomfort, Josh asked, "How old are you boys?"

"Nic's 9-we had him when we were 18-and Peter's 6-we had him when we were 21 and Clara died 2 years after that. She loved both of them so much. I moved them to Washington because I'm working for Senator Willock."

Nearly chocking on his coffee, Josh started at Donna's friend in amazement, as Willock was one of the most liberal Republicans in the Senate.

Joe laughed. "You work for Senator McGarry of Boston. You're very good at what you do, as his Chief of Staff," he smiled, then turned his attention back to Donna, "So, how's Sam?"

"He's great. He's a father now. She's about a month old." Donna knew that Joe would know that Sam and Lisa were divorced, so there was no need for her to voice that.

"What's the baby's name?"

Sipping her coffee, Donna replied, "Her name's Demi. Lisa's mum's French, so it seems like a good name."

There was a silence, then in a tone which was unknown to Donna, Joe asked, "So, Donna, are you seeing anyone at the moment?"

Josh sniggered and Donna kicked him under the table, before whispering, "Er-no, I'm not." She could feel herself blushing, as she did fancy Joe, she always had, if she were honest.

Smiling, Joe took out a piece of paper, wrote something on it and passed it to Donna. "This is my mobile number. If you want to go out for a drink on night, I can get my sister to watch the boys and we can go out." He smiled again, the stood up and walked away. He looked back at her, then walked away.

With shaking fingers, Donna picked up the piece of paper and started at it. Joe had just asked her out on a date and it was up to her to make the next move and that terrified her, even though he obviously had feelings for her.

As she and Josh walked away after finishing their coffees, Josh asked, "So, are you going to give him a call? He obviously really likes you and you like him."

"I don't know."

Taking hold of his best friend by the shoulders, Josh remarked, "Donna, he's a nice guy and you like each other, so give him a chance. You're always saying how you want to get married and have kids and he could be that guy, so give him a chance." He gave her a hug, then took hold of her hand and they walked back to their flats together.

Later that evening, when Josh and Kate were having a casual dinner together, sitting on the sofa, eating their sandwiches, Kate asked, "Josh, how many women have you been with?"

Naomi was with Donna and CJ for the night, they were having a girls' night, Sam was with Lisa and Mallory was spending the night at Rick's house.

Swallowing his bite, Josh replied, "One: Amy, Naomi's mum. What about you?"

Laughing nervously, Kate smiled. "Er-my boyfriend when I was 16, my boyfriend when I was 18 and-God forbid-Will, so that's three. I did love them all at the time, though."

There was a brief silence and Kate put her plate on the coffee table and took hold of Josh's hands. "I love you, Josh Lyman. I fancied you when we were 12 and I never gave up on us being together some day."

Putting his hand on the side of her face, Josh stated, "I love you, too." He kissed her deeply and they looked into the eyes of the other, both aware of the emotional consequences of what they were about to do, but they also knew that they loved each other and that was what mattered.


	7. Chapter 6: Things can change

**I do not own 'The West Wing'-but I do own: Naomi Lyman, Demi Seaborn, Bradley, and any other children who may come along soon. **

**Enjoy and, please, review. :)**

Chapter 6: Things can change…

One month later…

With the change of a month, a great deal had changed. Donna and Joe had gone on their first date and they had a second one scheduled for the weekend. Sam also had some amazing, yet shocking news: Lisa was about a month pregnant, with his child, again. He and Lisa were excited, but their friends didn't really share in their job: Demi was only two months old and in, at the most, 8 months, she was going to have a brother or sister, which wasn't fair on her. Josh and Kate were still a couple and they were very happy together; Kate was also making an effort to form a relationship with Naomi, but the little girl already really liked her dad's girlfriend, as she was glad to see her dad happy with someone who was not her biological mother.

On Monday morning, Josh, Sam and Kate were called into see Leo at about 8'oclock in the morning. Kate, who had spend the night at Josh and Naomi's flat, prepared a breakfast for herself, Josh and his daughter, whilst Josh called Donna and Mallory, asking if they could take care of Mallory before she went to school. He had noticed that, in the past few days, his girlfriend had seemed more distracted than normal and when he had asked her what was wrong, she had shrugged it off and not told him that everything was fine. He was worried, but he also knew not to push her.

By half-past eight, Naomi was dropped off at Donna and Mallory's flat and Josh, Sam and Kate arrived outside Leo's office and waited for Margret to admit them.

They entered and Leo was sitting behind his desk, looking very unhappy and this added to the sinking feeling in Josh's stomach, as he, Sam and Kate sat down opposite their boss and the latter's uncle.

"Sam," Leo began, "I hear, from a reporter, that you and Lisa are back together. Now, whilst personally I saw, congratulations, politically, I have to take you out and whack you with a shuffle! How could you be so stupid?"

Very confused, Sam sighed. "Leo, I'm sorry but Lisa and I haven't done anything wrong!"

Leo exhaled with frustration of how politically stupid his Deputy Chief of Staff was. "Sam, not only did Lisa commit adultery, but she gave birth to your daughter, after your divorce"-

"Demi was conceived whilst we were still married!"

"Yes, but, after her birth, you got back together and now, she's pregnant again. You're a very visible man, Sam, and this does not make the party look good!"

Glaring at Leo, Sam stated, "Lisa and I love each other and we've done nothing wrong. We love our daughter and she's pregnant with twins now and we shall love them just as much. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go to work and work. I love Lisa and that's all that matters, Good day, Leo!" With that, he stormed out of Leo's office. Leo gave Josh a look and Josh followed him.

"Sam. Sam, calm down!" he called, as he caught up with his friend and pulled him into his office. "Sam, you have to calm down!"

Sam pulled away from Josh and cried: "This is none of his business. It's none of the party's business. Lisa and I love each other and we have a beautiful daughter and now we're going to have two more babies. We've been together since we've been 18-9 years and we love each other, so what's wrong with that?"

Running his hands through his hands, Josh sighed. "Sam, you need to calm down and face the fact that this is a very public job and that people are going to watch you're every move!"

"People watch your every move too!" Sam snapped. "Do you not think that people have noticed that Kate spends most nights at your flat? 'Cause, I have! How could you do that to Amy?"

"Sam, Amy broke up with my eight years ago. I think I have a right to be happy with Kate."

"Yeah, you do, but what about Naomi. Kate isn't her mum and she never will be, even if you and Kate marry!" Sam lowered his voice and asked, in a gentle voice, "Do you and Kate love each other?"

Smiling, his friend replied, "Of course I love her-if I didn't, I wouldn't have made love with her, would I?" There was a silence, then he said, "I have to get back to Leo. It's see you later."

He walked back to Leo's office, but before he could enter, he heard Kate stating: "Uncle Leo, I love him so much and I would never hurt him or Naomi. I want to spend the rest of my life with him! I don't care what people think. I swear, if, in a year, he asked me to marry him, I would say 'yes' without hesitating, which is quicker than I did with Will!"

At lunchtime, when Donna was out having some lunch by herself, she saw Joe walking towards her. She blushed and smiled, as she fancied him.

He sat down next to her and said, "Hey, how are you?"

"I'm fine, thanks," replied Donna, smiling, "I thought our date wasn't until Saturday. What are you doing here?"

Looking down at his hands and exhaling a deep breath, Joe remarked, "I-er-I'm sorry, Donna, but I can't see you again. I'm sorry."

Staring at him in disbelief, Donna chocked out. "What, why? Have I done something wrong?

"No," Joe reassured her, smiling, "it's me, Donna. I'm a widowed single father and you didn't sign up for a relationship with that. I'm sorry, but you deserve better. If it helps, I think I could have fallen deeply in love with you."

Biting back the tears which were threatening to fall down her face, Donna whispered, "I could've fallen deeply in love with you, too, Joe." She forced herself to smile.

"Goodbye, Donna." Joe whispered, before leaning forward and kissing her check. He then stood up and walked away. Donna cried and he did the same once he was around the corner.

That evening, when Josh and Kate arrived home, Josh put on dinner and Naomi went to play in her bedroom.

Kate sat on the sofa, typing up a report on the computer, but her eyes weren't following the report properly and Josh noticed this.

He sat down next to her on the sofa and noting that fact that her typing had slowed, he asked, "Kate, what's wrong?"

"Nothing." Her eyes stayed glued to her laptop scream.

"Kate, we're boyfriend and girlfriend; we're not supposed to keep secrets from each other. Now, please, tell me what's wrong. I love and that will never change." He looked into her eyes and she looked up.

Biting her lip, she replied, "It isn't something bad-it's just something unexpected." She took hold of his hands and whispered, "Josh, I'm about a month pregnant. I only just found out a day ago and I haven't told anyone else."

There was a silence, in which time Kate sat there studying her boyfriend's face. When he finally spoke, he whispered, "Kate, marry me."

Kate stared at him in disbelief. "What? Have you lost your mind?"

"Kate, I love you and I want us to be a family. I really want this. I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Josh told her, looking deep into her eyes.

Squeezing his hands, his girlfriend replied, "Josh, I love you too, but I don't want to marry you just because of this baby." She hesitated, then asked, "Is this about happened with Amy, because, I promise, Josh, I won't leave you, Naomi or the baby, but marriage is something which needs to be considered."

Desperately, Josh remarked, "Well, you told Leo that you'd say 'yes' if I asked you to marry me."

"In a year, when we're sure this is what we want." Kate sighed and moved closer to him on the sofa, before stating, in a sincere voice, "Josh, I have no doubt I will marry you someday-maybe in a year, or two. I know that I love you and I always will, but I want to become your wife when I'm ready, but we can still be a family when this baby comes. I really want that: I want to spend my life with you and have kids. I love you far more than I ever loved Will and that will never chance, whether I'm married to you or not."

Josh smiled and they leaned forward and kissed each other passionately, knowing that they loved each other.

As soon as they told Naomi, the 8-year-old hugged her dad and Kate, then asked, "Kate, can you move in with us, so that we can be near to you and the baby? Please, you can help me with my work when Daddy can't and when the baby comes, I'm going to have a brother or sister! Will you move in with us, please?"

Kate nodded and Naomi jumped onto the sofa in between the two adults and hugged them tightly.

Ten minutes later, when Naomi and Kate had gone out for a walk and Josh was preparing dinner, Donna came in, looking very upset.

"What's wrong?"

Sitting down on the sofa, his friend murmured, "Joe broke up with me."

Sitting next to her and putting his arm around her, he asked, "What, why? Did he give a reason?"

Donna wiped away her tears and replied, "He said that his life as a single dad is too complicated and he can't date me because of that. Then he said that-that he could've fallen deeply in love with me and I told him the same thing. I really liked him, Josh, and now I feel like such an idiot! I've lost him."

Biting his lip, Josh sighed. "Donna, with my very limited relationship experience, there's one thing I've learnt."

Turning to face him, Donna asked what that was.

Smiling and looking her in the eye, Josh answered, "Don't give up until you have to. Don't give up on Joe yet. If he means as much to you as you say he does, don't give up yet. Trust me." There was a moment when their eyes connected and they sat there, searching each other's eyes and Donna started to think about something which had never occurred to her before, but this was broken when she moved and Josh stood up to check on the dinner.

"So, where are Naomi and Kate?" she asked, as she made herself comfortable on the sofa.

Stirring the dinner, Josh answered, "Oh, they've gone out for a walk." He hesitating, then, turning to his best friend, asked, "Can I tell you something, which, at the moment, only three people know?"

Donna smiled, as Josh sat down next to her. "You can tell me anything. What else are best friends for?"

"Kate's about a month pregnant, with my child. She told me and I-I asked her to marry me."

In shock, Donna just stared at him. As soon as she regained her voice, she asked, "What did she say?"

Laughing slightly, Josh replied, "Well, she said 'no', but that she would say 'yes' in the future and she did agree to move in with Nai and myself-permanently."

"Oh, my goodness, Josh, that's amazing!" Donna pulled him into a tight hug and brushed her tears on his jumper, so that he would not see her tears of happiness.

Early the next morning, Kate went to her uncle's office so that he knew before someone else told him. She and Josh had told: Naomi, her mum, her three brothers, Josh's parents, Sam, Lisa, C.J, Charlie and Zoe (she knew that Josh had told Donna beforehand, as he told her almost everything.) Lisa had been delighted, as their babies would be born around the same time and that made her think that she would have a friend of Sam's-besides Donna, with whom she was very close.

Standing in front of Leo, who looked very quiet, she stated: "Uncle Leo, I'm pregnant. I'm about a month along."

Leo stared at her, then asked, "Is it Josh's? Why don't you marry him? You love him, he loves you, why not marry?"

Kate explained her reasons to her uncle and that she was going to stick by what she had told Josh the previous night. She was very excited about the idea of living with Josh. She excused herself from his office, as she still needed to tell the President.

The President was very happy for her and Josh and offered them his congratulations and assurances that her job would still be there after she came back from maternity leave.

Naomi was dropped off at the train station and found her mother on the platform. Amy embraced her daughter in a hug and asked her how she was.

As they walked over to the car, Naomi asked, "Have you heard Dad and Kate's news?"

Frowning, Amy inquired, "Er-who's Kate, darling?"

"She's Dad's girlfriend and she' going to move in with us soon. Anyway, she and Dad are expecting a baby! Can you believe it? I'm going to be a big sister, Mum!"

The 8-year-old continued talking, unaware of the pain she had caused her mother; Amy was sitting in the car, with her body shaking and with tears threatening to fall onto her face. Joh was in love with someone else and he was having a baby with this woman, whom he loved.

More to herself than to her daughter, Amy whispered, "I've missed my chance. I've lost him forever."

Later that night, Donna ordered pizza for the five of them (Lisa was working and her parents were looking after Demi for the night). Donna knew that pizza was something that they call would eat, so that reassured her.

Just as she was about to go outside to fill in the recycling bin, her mobile phone rang. She looked at the I.D and, confused, answered it. It was Joe.

There was silence for a while on both sides of the phone, then Joe said, "Hey, how are you, Donna?"

Swallowing, Donna replied, "I'm fine, thanks. How are you?"

"I'm just wondering if my breaking up with you was the best thing to do, especially after what we said to each other."

Ignoring that Josh had told her, Donna remarked, "I think it was the best thing to do. It wouldn't have gone well for either of us and, besides, it's never good to date something with whom you think you could fall deeply in love." This was killing her inside, but she had no choice. "Yes, I'm sure, Joe."

There was a knock on the door. Josh answered it and they all saw that it was Joe, who was holding his mobile phone in his hands.

Speaking into the phone, but looking into Donna's eyes and he asked, "Are you sure?"

Sam, CJ and Kate turned around to watch what was going on.

Ignoring the fact that her brother and friends were watching, remembering that Josh had told her and giving into her instincts, Donna put down her mobile phone, walked over to Joe, putting her hands at either side of his face, kissed him passionately and he kissed her back in the same fashion.

About a weak later, Kate was moved into Josh and Naomi's flat and was very happy there. Donna and Joe were now a couple. She had met his sons, Nicolas and Peter, and she really liked him, but they did not like her, because they felt as if she was trying to replace Clara, their late mother.

"Don't take it personally," Joe told her one night when he and Donna were having dinner, after Nicolas and Peter were in their bedrooms, "they wouldn't like you if you were anyone-it isn't to do with you-it's about the fact that I havn't been with anyone since their mother died and that's why they recent you."

Donna nodded, then asked, "Are they close to your mum and stepdad?"

Joe's father, Joseph Quincy, after whom Joe was named, had dies before Joe had been born; about a year after his birth his mother, Renee, had re-married a man named Arthur Haddok and two years later, they had had a baby girl, Joe's half-sister. Joe and his sister were very close, but his mother and he had always had a strange relationship, on the account that he reminded her of his father and that hurt her too much.

Joe nodded. "Yeah, they're very close to my mum and Arthur and, of course, they're close to Clara's parents and brothers. They're closer to my own mother than I am and I they see Iris every weekend."

"How old is she now?"

"She is 22 now. She's doing a PhD in English Literate at Washington University. She has a girlfriend now, named Rachael, who's a lovely girl. They've been together for a couple of weeks and I already like her and so do the boys." He paused, then asked, "Can I ask you something which may be hard to answer?"

Nodding and very confused, Donna smiled and replied, "Of course."

Joe moved uncomfortably, then asked, "Is there a history between you and Josh Lyman?"

For a while, Donna remained silent, because of the shock of the question, before answering, "No-we've never been a couple. He's my best friend. I love him like a brother and he feels the same way about me."

"So, how many boyfriends have you had?" Joe shock his head and snapped at himself. "I'm sorry, Donna. Don't answer that question-I have no right to answer that question; we've only been together for a weak."

Donna smiled at him. "No, Joe, isn't fine. I've only ever been in one relationship, one which I deeply regret and I wish I'd never set eyes on him." Knowing that she had give an explanation to her boyfriend, she began: "We met when I was at university and I dropped out because I asked me to. When he finished, he proposed and I said 'yes'. He broke up with me and broke my heart, which is when I moved to Washington and met Josh. He let me stay with him and Naomi and he didn't ask questions-all he really knew me as was Sam's younger sister and yet the kindness he showed me was amazing. Then, after a couple of months, my ex-fiancée asked me to go back to him and…I did, but it only lasted for a couple of months. Something happened, so I left him. I went back to Washington and Josh took me in again. He had no reason to, but he did. I went back to uni and got a job, I got a flat of my own. About a year later, I met CJ and she moved in with me. She moved out soon, though and then Charlie came to live opposite me. When Mallory came to Washington, she had broken her engagement, like me, and I took her in, as Josh had done with me, and I took care of her, because she was Josh's friend. I haven't seen my ex-fiancée since I left him and I hope I will never see him again."

There was a silence, then Joe looked into her eyes. "Donna, you're amazing. I wish I'd had the guts to ask you out in secondary school. If I had, would you have said 'yes'?"

"Of course-I had such a massive crush on you." Donna smiled and they kissed again.

Naomi left her bedroom to go and get something to drink and was surprised to see only her dad in the sitting room. "Where's Kate?" as she poured herself a glass of milk.

Looking up from the newspaper, her dad replied, "She had to go into work, sweetie. Are you having trouble sleeping?"

"No." Naomi lied. She bit her lip and sat down next to her dad, wondering whether she should tell him this or not. "Dad, I told Mum about you and Kate having a baby together and she didn't know. Dad, she was really upset. Why would she be upset?"

After thinking for a while, Josh remarked, "I don't know."

"Do you think she still loves you?"

That question caught Josh off guard, as he had not expected his eight-year-old daughter to ask him that question regarding her mother. "No, of course she doesn't."

Drinking her milk, Naomi asked, "How do you know?"

Trying to keep the pain out of his eyes, Josh replied, "She left us; she wouldn't have done that if she'd loved me." He turned to his daughter and forced a smile. "Get to bed, sweetie."

As soon as Naomi was back in her bedroom, Josh ran his hands through his hair in a stressed manner. Did Amy still love him and, if she did, did that change how he felt about her?


	8. Chapter 7: Our secrets we keep

Chapter 7: Our secrets we keep.

On a Saturday morning, when Kate and Mallory were cleaning Donna and Mallory's flat when Donna was out with Joe, so that, when she returned, she wouldn't freak out about all of the mess, there was a knock on the door and Kate answered it.

It was a man with dark hair and he was very tall. "Er-hi," he spoke with a distinctive English accent, "is C.J in?"

Mallory glanced at Kate, very confused, before Kate replied, "No, she's isn't in."

"Doesn't she live her?"

"She did, a couple of years ago."

Very confused, the man asked, "So, how long have you two lived here?"

Kate looked the man up and down, wondering who in the world he was. "I'm Kate Harper. I don't live here, but Donna and Mallory do."

The man pursed his lips and placed the flowers on the table, before saying: "Okay, can you just tell C.J I was here?"

"Yeah, sure," replied Kate, observing the flowers, "who should we say you are?"

"Ben Harrison, her husband." With that, he leaft the flat, leaving Mallory and Kate very confused. Did CJ really have a husband, about whom none of them knew?

Half an hour later, when Donna had returned from Joe's and Josh had brought Naomi over and Sam brought Demi over, Mallory and Kate told Donna and Josh about the man, who had come along, claiming to be C.J's husband.

On the floor playing with Naomi, Donna looked up and asked, "Kate, did you say his name was Ben Harrison?"

"Yeah. I'm guessing his parents were big fans of President Benjamin Harrison. Why do you ask?"

Donna bit her lip, trying to remember. "He and C,J dated, when she and I were still living together-before Mallory and Sam moved into the city. Do you remember him, Josh?"

"Briefly. Was he was the one who collected bugs?"

"Yeah, he was. They dated for nearly 2 years and then he disappeared and I've never heard of him since."

Frowning, Kate asked, "Well, if he left, how can they be married?"

No-one had the answer, so they resolved to ask C.J about it when she came round to Donna and Mallory's for lunch.

As soon as C.J entered, her eyes fell on the flowers Ben had left, then on her friends, who were watching her expectantly.

It was Donna who spoke first. "So, CJ, who's Ben Harrison?"

There was a silence and CJ knew what her former flat-mate was asking her and felt a surge of guilt fill her; Donna had let her into her home and she had not told her about her marriage with Ben and that guilt was eating away at her with every moment. "Well, in my last year at school, he was my English Literature teacher and I had a huge crush on him. I was 18 and he was 21, as it was his first job out of university, so the age gap was only two years. Keep that in mind. After I graduated from university, we met again and we-we had a fling and spend the night together. Anyway, from then-on, we dated, but I broke up with him, because I really wanted to create my career and I couldn't do that with dating someone. Anyway, years later, when I was living with you, Donna, we met again and we dating. After about a year, at the time I was in my late 20s, he asked me to marry him and I said 'yes'. We eloped, but after a couple of months, we legally separated, and I haven't seen him since then." She had directed her story to Donna.

Trying to hide the hurt in her voice, Donna asked, "Why didn't you tell me, C.J? I thought we were friends, I thought we told each other everything?"

"We normally do and I love you and Josh like a sister and brother, but this, I-I guess by the time I was ready to tell you, our relationship was going down- hill. Our marriage made us feel more pressured that when we'd just been a couple. I guess that fact that I was in my late 20s at the time, made me worried, as, at the time, I really wanted to have kids with him. I'm sorry."

Sam could see the hurt in his sister's eyes and face and he could relate; he couldn't imagine what he would do if he found out that Josh, whom he considered to be his best friend, had done something like that, he would feel hurt as well as angry. Rocking his baby daughter, he asked, "So, who knows that you and Ben eloped, C.J?"

C.J sighed, walked over to the chair and sat down. Donna curled up on the sofa next to her, with Sam and Demi on her other side and Josh and Kate sat on the floor, near Naomi, who, despite approaches, was listening to this conversation very intently.

Inhaling a deep breathe, CJ told them: "My dad, mum, stepdad and brothers all know."

"Why don't you ask him for a divorce if you haven't seen him for years?" inquired Kate.

"I don't want to be like my parents; they divorced when I was 5 and my brothers were 9 and 11. It was hard on all of us and I don't want to go through that again. I-I married because I was pregnant. After we separated, I gave the baby up for adoption. We were in a stable relationship, like you and Josh, Kate, and then when he found out that I was pregnant, he freaked out and we separated soon after that."

Another silence followed, which was only broken by Josh and Kate's beeper's going and it was Leo; he wanted both of them to go and see him at his office.

Josh turned to his daughter and asked, "Sweetie, will you be alright here with Auntie Donna, Aunt Mallory, Uncle Sam and Auntie C.J?"

Smiling, his daughter nodded and kissed him.

As Josh and Kate walked towards, the door, she called: "Kate!" They turned around and Naomi smiled. "I'm really excited about the baby. We can be a proper family. Can-can I have a kiss from you?"

Tears filling her eyes, overcome with emotion, Kate walked back over to her boyfriend's daughter, and kissed her on the forehead. Naomi wrapped her arms around her and squeezed her tightly and Kate hugged her back and looked up at Josh, who was smiling.

For the first time, Kate felt as if she was truly wanted by the eight-year-old girl and not just because she was going to give her a half-brother or sister.

Leo carried his cup of coffee into his office and sat down behind his desk, as Josh and Kate entered.

He stood up and smiled, the remarked, "Guys, I have some bad news. Someone who works for the Washington Post has found out about your living together and about your pregnancy, Kate. What do you want us to do?"

"Do? There's nothing to do, Uncle Leo. It's nobody's business." replied Kate, in a firm tone.

Leo glanced at Josh, with amusement in his eyes, then continued, "Kate, you have to understand that both you and Josh are very high profile, visible members of the government and, therefore, we have to respond to this in an appropriate manner."

His niece rolled her eyes. "Uncle, what Josh and I do is no-one's business."

"No, but the fact that you're pregnant with Josh's child, but you're not engaged to be married kind of messes up our marriage-incentive policy, not to mention the fact that you're living together!" Leo snapped, immediately regretting that he had brought policy into a conversation which was really about how Josh and Kate presented themselves to the public.

There was silence, and in a slightly breathless voice, Kate asked, "So, the fact that we're not engaged is a political issue?"

"Unforchantley, yes, it is."

"But why? It's none of their business. We love each other and that's what matters-not if we're going to get married or not! And didn't you have a similar conversation with Sam, regarding Lisa's pregnancy?"

Sighing, her uncle replied, "Sam and Lisa are going to make a statement-about their relationship and that they're expecting twins."

Looking at Leo intently, Josh asked quietly, "And you want us to do the same?"

"Well, the problem is that you work for me and Kate works for the President of the United States, so you're both very high profile people. God, I would be so much easier if you were engaged to be married."

Rolling her eyes, Kate stated, "You marry someone when you love them and when you want to spend your life with them."

"And you two do want to do those things, so why are you farting about?" Leo bellowed, his anger getting the better of him.

"Uncle, Josh asked me to marry him and I said 'no'." Kate stated, in an even voice, aware that her boyfriend was looking down at the ground and snuffing his feet on the floor, clearly embarrassed by the fact that Kate had said 'no.'

Leo ran his hands through his hair, wondering how to respond to that. He hadn't known that Kate had turned down Josh's proposal and he couldn't understand why she had refused him, as he knew how much they loved each other. Finally, he changed the subject, by saying, "Your mum's going to come to Washington in a couple of months, Kate, and your parents, Josh."

Looking up at Leo, Josh asked, "Where are they going to stay?"

"Josie's going to stay with me. Noah and Ruth are going to stay in a hotel for a couple of nights, then they'll come and stay with me and Josie."

In order to irritate Leo, Josh asked, "Leo, have you met Mal's boyfriend, Rick Allan?" Kate sniggered and looked down at the floor, trying to mask her smile.

"Yes, I have."

Smirking, Josh asked, "And, what do you think of him?"

Shooting Josh a mocking glare, Leo snapped, "He's a complete idiot! Get out, both of you! We'll discuss this on Monday."

Josh and Kate signed out, then walked back to their car. "I have to go to work," Kate told him, as they reached their car, "so, I'll see you later, OK?"

Pulling her close and smiling, Josh replied, "OK. I'll see you later." He leaned forward and kissed her and she kissed him back, closing her eyes. She rested her arms by her chest, against his jumper and they kissed again.

Their lips parted and Josh released his girlfriend from his arms and whispered, "I'll see you later, then." Kate chuckled to herself and, letting go of his hands, climbed into the car and Josh made his way over to the bus stop and waited for a bus.

"So, Sam," CJ asked, as they all sat together having lunch, "Lisa's expecting twins?"

Nodding, Sam replied, "Yeah, she is. We're really excited."

"Are you hoping for boys or girls?" inquired Mallory, as she sat down on Rick's knee, which made Sam want to throw up. Even though he seemed like a nice guy, Sam hated him, which made no sense, considering that he was with Lisa again.

Looking over at his daughter who was in Donna's arms, Sam answered, "Well, I'd like to have a son. I mean, I'd love to have one daughter and two sons, or two daughters and one son."

CJ smile and asked, "Have you thought of names?"

"Yeah, for a girl we're thinking of Julia and for a boy we're thinking of Devon."

Josh chocked on his drink and looked up at Sam. "Devon? You want to name your son Devon? Why would you do that?"

Confused, Sam remarked, "It's a nice name. Donna, help me out here."

Kissing Demi on the head, his sister replied, "I'm sorry, Sam, but I agree with Josh; I don't like the name Devon. It sounds like a coy-bow. However, if I had a nephew by that name, I would love him just as much as one with a sensible name." She smiled to herself, as she already had ideal names for her future children.

Sam walked over to the kitchen to collect some more crisps for his plate, as, at home, Lisa prohibited him from eating them. "How did you decide on Naomi's name?" He asked Josh, as he sat back down.

"We named her after Amy's grandmother, who had died a couple of years before. She and Amy were very close."

Sam stared at his friend in disbelief and asked, with horror in his voice, "You named your daughter after a dead person?"

Looking irritated, Josh told him, "Sam, it's a Jewish tradition to name babies after the dead."

"Really? Who are you named after?"

"My dad's younger brother, who was also named Joshua Lyman. He died when he was 3 and my dad was 6."

CJ frowned and asked, "I'm sorry, but how did a 3-year-old die? That just doesn't sound right!"

Josh glanced at his daughter, who had finished her lunch and she was playing with her toys, in the corner, before replying, in a tightened voice, "They were in a concentration camp. Joshua was only three, so he was murdered straight away."

A heavy silence followed and was interrupted by Naomi coming over to them and asking, "Dad, what are you and Kate going to name the baby?" She pulled herself onto the sofa and crawled on to his knee.

"I don't know, sweetie. We haven't thought about it."

Naomi rested her head on her dad's arm and stated, "I want it to be a girl; I've always wanted to have a baby sister. You and Kate aren't married, but is the baby going to have our surname, not Kate's?"

Kissing his daughter on the head, Josh answered, "Yes, the baby will have our surname."

Just then, there was a knock on the door and Mallory removed herself from her boyfriend's lap and opened the door, after swallowing what she was eating.

It was Ben again and Mallory wasn't sure wheather she should let him into the flat or not.

Luckily for her, C.J stood up, grabbed her coat and walked past Ben and closed to door. They walked to the park in silence, then CJ turned around and slapped him hard on the face and shouted, "What right do you have to turn up after all of these years? You just left me, without any warning."

"We were legally separated!" he protested, but he knew that he would not get very far, because of the nature of his former girlfriend.

"I don't care if we agreed that we would live on the other side of the world, Ben! You should have told me! You should have let me know that you were"-

She was silenced with a kiss and, despite her brain telling her not to do so, she relaxed into it and kissed him back, closing her eyes. There, they stood for a while and when they parted, they stayed silent, staring into each other's eyes. They sat down on a bench together, then Ben said, "I met our daughter, you know? Not officially, she's in my class. She looks just like you, CJ. I'm sorry I left you. I came here because I need another chance. Please, CJ, give me another chance. I love you too much to let you go."

CJ sat there in silence and made no reply. Then she rummaged into her handbag and produced papers and passed them to Ben, who opened them. "They're divorce papers, Ben," she told him in a stale voice, "I've signed my part, now all I need is your signature, and that'll be it: we'll be divorced."

"C.J, please, I want us to have another chance. Please, I love you so much."

Shaking her head, CJ reached into her handbag and produced a pen and held it in her hands.

Ben shook his head and protested once again, declaring his love for her and that he would always love her.

Looking into his eyes, CJ whispered, "Ben, if you ever really loved me, sign the papers, please. If you ever loved me, let me go."

An hour later, CJ returned to Donna and Mallory's flat, after showing the papers to her lawyers. As soon as she was alone with Donna and Mallory, she burst into tears; she knew that she had done the right thing, so why did she feel so badly about it? She knew that she and Ben could never, ever be together. As friends, maybe someday, but not in the way she had wanted since she had been eighteen.


	9. Chapter 8:Interesting,shocking discovery

Chapter 8: Making interesting, yet shocking discoveries.

Two months later…

All of the snow had now receded from the ground and the sun was shining very brightly.

Both Kate and Lisa were now 3 months pregnant, with 6 months left until their children were born, but the sonograms to discover the sexes of their babies were in a couple of days and both women and their boyfriends were very excited, although Josh though that he and Kate should wait until the baby was born to discover the sex of their baby, but Kate and Naomi thought otherwise.

Since divorcing Ben, CJ had thrown herself into her work and spend most of the time in the field, finding and writing stories. It was something which distracted her from thinking about what she had lost.

One Friday evening, Sam and Lisa invited around their friends to go and have dinner at their house. They all accepted and Naomi liked the idea of having time with Demi, whom she loved as her own cousin. Naomi, like her dad and Kate, loved babies and was also very excited about finding about if she was going to have a half-sister or a half-brother.

As they all sat down for dinner (with Naomi sitting at another table with Demi in a high-chair), Lisa asked her boyfriend, "Well, what should we say in our statement?"

"Well, we're giving it after finding out the sex, so why don't we just say: 'we are expecting twins of X sex. We couldn't be happier to be blessed with them, so soon after the birth of our beautiful daughter'."

Josh shook his head and remarked, "Sam, it's probably not a good idea to remind people that Demi was only born a couple of months ago. It doesn't look good." He sighed, then asked, "Has Leo spoken to you two about the whole being engaged thing, because he's spoken to us."

Sam and Lisa smiled, leaned in and kissed, before Sam replied, "He didn't have to; we're engaged to be married."

Josh stared at them, not saying anything; he had never liked Lisa and now she and Sam were engaged to be married for the second time, when he was sure that, at some point, she was going to be unfaithful again, and break Sam's heart and Josh knew that Kate thought the same thing.

"Congratulations!" Donna declared, smiling, seeing the look of horror on her best friend's face and she didn't want Sam to take it personally, as Josh's dislike of the situation was because he did not and had never liked Lisa and he didn't trust her, and neither did Donna, if she were perfectly honest.

Later that evening, when all of the others had gone home and Josh and Donna were having a walk around the park, Donna asked, "Josh, do you think Sam is making a mistake in marrying Lisa again?"

"Honestly? Yes, I think he's making a great mistake; she betrayed him once, so who's to say that she wouldn't do it again?"

Donna nodded, as the completely agreed, but she also knew that neither of them could say anything to Sam, as it would be seen as a grave betrayal. In order to lighten the moad, she asked, "Are you excited about Kate's sonogram?"

Smiling, Josh answered, "Yeah, I am and so are Kate and Naomi." He hesitated, then continued, "Nai said that when she told Amy about the baby and about Kate living with us, she said that Amy cried, that she was upset. Why would Amy have been upset?"

"Maybe she still loves you." Donna whispered, aware that that may not be what Josh wanted to hear. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"No, isn't fine. Don't worry." Josh sighed, then inquired, "How's CJ, since she and Ben divorced?"

Donna frowned. "She hasn't said much. I've never been divorced, but I'm guessing it's pretty hard. Do you think Sam still has feelings for Mallory?"

Josh laughed and replied, "Of course he does. This is Sam. He's fancied Mal since he was 18 and I don't think he's going to stop now, even though he is with Lisa and she's with Rick."

"Do-do you think that if Amy hadn't broken up with you, you would have gone onto marry her after Naomi's birth?"

Looking down at the ground, Josh whispered, "I would've been happy to spend the rest of my life with her." Noting the use of the past tense, Donna nodded and asked no more. She did wonder if Kate knew how much Josh had loved Amy.

A couple of days later, Josh, Kate, Sam and Lisa made their ways to G.W hospital to have sonograms.

When they were in the room, Sam took Lisa's hand, but Lisa pulled away and threw him a glare. Sam thought that that was weird, but put it down to pregnancy hormones.

"So, how's the baby?" he asked, when the doctor was running an examination.

"The baby is fine," answered the doctor, "now, I understand that you had a baby girl a couple of months ago? Do you want to know the sex of the twins?"

Sam and Lisa nodded.

"Well, you have a boy and girl. Congratulations." The doctor smiled.

Sam and Lisa kissed, then Lisa announced: "Sam, I have the perfect names! Devon and Julia Seaborn, how does that sound? And we're going to be married, Sam!"

Sam nodded and smiled, but there was something in the pit of his stomach that was indicating that there was something wrong and he didn't know if was regarding the twins or his relationship with Lisa, or maybe it was both.

"Well, Miss. Harper, you are four months pregnant." Dr. Leigh announced to Josh and Kate.

There was a long silence, then Kate stated, "Dr, I have to be three months, as my boyfriend and I were intimate after being together for a month, 3 months ago. You have to wrong."

Dr. Leigh bit her lip. "I'm sorry, Kate, but I don' think the baby is your boyfriend's. Have you had any encounters of that nature before you and your boyfriend were together?"

Kate paled and felt as if she was going to be sick. She squeezed Josh's hands and he returned the pressure, so she knew that he was not angry with you.

Understanding that the couple needed to be alone, Dr. Leigh left the paperwork on the table so that they could find out the sex of the baby if they wanted to, and quitted the room, as quietly as she could.

Tears fell down Kate's face and she inhaled deeply. Josh sat down next to her and pulled her into his arms as she cried. "It's alright. We're going to be fine."

After about ten minutes of crying, Kate wiped her eyes, sat up and exhaled a deep breath, prepared to provide Josh with an explanation. "The night I moved to Washington, I went to a bar to get some food. I had nothing to drink. Anyway, there was this guy and he-he kind of forced himself on me and then left me. That was it." She burst into tears again. "Honestly, when I found out I was pregnant I thought it was yours, I swear, Josh. You have no idea how much I love you and I don't want to loose you."

Josh placed his hand on the side of her face and wiped her face. "It's alright, Kate and I love you too. Look, this is going to be my daughter, no matter what, ok? It's going to be my child and Naomi's brother or sister." He smiled.

"We have to tell Leo. I can't contact the father, so I'm assuming you'll just be able to adopt the baby before-or after its birth. I'm so sorry."

Planting a kiss on her check, Josh smiled at her and whispered, "We're going to be fine."

Kate smiled at the kiss and at his smile and inquired, "What are we going to tell your parents? Won't they be devastated that the baby isn't yours?"

"Kate, this baby is going to be raised by both of us, therefore, it is going to be my baby, no matter what and my parents are going to love it just for that. And, as for the press, we'll tell them whatever you feel comfortable with." He ended the last part in order to let her know that he was not going to push her on anything regarding what had happened the night the baby was conceived.

Entwining her hands in his, Kate smiled and remarked, "You know, the sex of our baby is right in that file. I'm going to have a peak, just so that we can start to discuss names. Are you going to look?"

Without replying, Josh picked up the file and handed it to Kate. She read it and a smile spread across her face. She looked up at him and whispered, "Josh Lyman, we're having a baby girl." She moved her head up and her lips met his. They shared a passionate kiss.

"So, I'm really 4 months along-with 5 to go."

After being released from the hospital, Sam and Lisa went back to Donna and Mallory's flat and Josh and Kate made their way to Leo's office, as they wanted to talk to him before anyone else. They knew that it may be an issue if someone in the press found out and, therefore, Kate wanted to make a pre-emptive strike, so that they could filter what information they gave to the press and what they didn't give to them.

After telling Leo what was going on-without really providing him with the details, as Kate wasn't really ready for her uncle to have to know about what had happened, Leo sighed, then stated, "I think we need to talk to a lawyer and a journalist."

"What?" Josh asked, astounded that Leo was suggesting this. "No, we don't."

Sighing, Kate answered, "Yes, we do, Josh; we need a lawyer in our defence just in case and we need a journalist so that we can control what we tell the Press and what we don't tell them. I need to have control over this."

Understanding what his girlfriend was saying, Josh nodded and sighed, knowing that she was right.

Leo sat back down in his chair. "Ok, we need a good lawyer first. What did you say the name of that guy is, the one who's dating Donna?"

"Joe Quincy, but Leo he works for Senator"-

"I know for whom he works, Josh!" Leo snapped, "but you guys need all the help you can get and Joe Quincy is the first step to that. Margret!" He called for his assistant through the closed door. She came in and he ordered, "Can you call Joe Quincy and ask him to come here at his earliest connivance, please." Margret nodded and went back outside to the out office.

Biting her lip, Kate suddenly announced: "Leo, with all of that, we didn't tell you whether it's a boy or a girl!"

A smile spread across Leo's face.

"We're having a daughter!" Kate cried. She hugged Leo, then he said, "Your mum will want to know that she's going to have a granddaughter, Catherine-Françoise!" Kate flinched, as she hated being addressed with her full name.

Half an hour later, the door opened and Joe Quincy walked in, dressed in a suit and tie. "Senator McGarry, it's a pleasure," he smiled, then he turned to Josh and Kate and, in a less formal manner, asked, "Didn't the two of you have a sonogram this morning?"

"That's what we wanted to talk to you about," replied Josh, as he, Joe and Kate sat down, oppisote Leo, "we need your advice, just in case we've broken any laws."

Joe just nodded, feeling very confused, but he decided not to ask any questions until they had told him what they needed to.

Kate inhaled a deep breathe and began: "The thing is, Mr. Quincy I thought that I was pregnant with Josh's baby, but because of how far along I am and the time-frame in which the baby was conceived…it can't be Josh's. When I moved to Washington, 4 months ago, I was at a bar and this guy…took advantage of me. I just want to know if we've broken any laws."

"No," replied Joe, "it was a genuine mistake. No-one could ever think that you did intentionally."

"Thanks, Joe." Leo smiled and stood up to shake the man's hand, then he turned to Josh and his niece, "You'll have to tell your parents. You can use my phone." He crossed the room and leadt it.

Biting his lip, Joe asked Josh, "How're gonna tell Naomi?"

"She'll love her sister the same way anyway." Josh smiled, before saying, "Joe, if you see Donna, could you tell her that we're going to go to her and Mal's as soon as we-you know-do this."

Joe nodded, understand. "Sure, I'll see you later." He and Josh shared a look of understanding, before he nodded to Kate and leaft the room.

"So, where are they?" Donna asked that evening, when Joe told her and the others that Josh and Kate were "dealing with stuff" and that had been over an hour ago. "Are they alright, is the baby alright?"

Before Joe could ever think of something to say, the door of Donna and Mallory's flat opened and Josh and Kate walked it. Naomi ran over to them and she was scooped up into her dad's arms and also hugged by Kate.

Upon seeing Charlie and Zoe in the sitting room, Kate asked, "Don't take the wrong way, but what are you doing here?"

"We came back for a weak, to hear the news you two have and Sam and Lisa."

Turning to his friend, Josh asked, "Sam, where's Lisa?"

"She's at home resting. Right, I can tell you guys now cause we're all here."

Everyone sat down: Josh, Kate and Naomi on the sofa, Donna and Joe sat on the floor, with their hands entwined, CJ in the chair, and Charlie and Zoe in the other.

Beaming with joy, Sam announced: "We're having twins: a boy and a girl! A boy and a girl! I'm going to have two daughters and a son!"

Donna was the first to jump up and hug her brother with congratulations and the others followed suit.

As soon as they were all seated again, Donna turned to Josh and Kate and asked, "What about you two? What are you having?"

There was a silence, then Kate felt Josh squeeze her hand and she smiled at the warmth and strength which it offered her. "I'm really 4 months along."

"But you can't be," Charlie was the first one to speak up, "you and Josh haven't been…" he trailed off, realising what she was saying without her saying it.

Confused, Naomi sat up and asked, "What do you mean, Kate?"

Josh took hold of her hands and answered, "Sweatie, biologically, the baby inside of Kate isn't mine, but don't worry, the real father doesn't want anything to do with it."

A smile spread across her face and she flung herself into Josh and Kate's arms. "Great! Wait, is it a girl or boy?"

Kate told her that she was going to have a baby sister and Naomi hugged them once again, her entire body filled with joy.

After Naomi had gone to bed and Josh was with her, Kate went back to Donna and Mallory's flat, where all of her friends were waiting to find out what happened.

As she told them, Donna and CJ held her hands, as it was a very painful story for her to recite. After that, she told them that her mum knew and so did Josh's parents and none of them minded as long as the baby was loved, which they knew, with them as parents, she would be.

After the others had left and Mallory had gone to bed, Donna and Joe sat together, watching TV for a while. "Are the boys with your mum?"

"Yeah, they are; they're spending a couple of nights there." Joe paused, then asked, "Donna, do you want to have kids?"

Smiling sadly, Donna whispered, "Yes, I do. I always have. Josh and Kate are so lucky-their daughter is going to be loved so much!"

Her boyfriend nodded in agreement. He took hold of Donna's hand, squeezed it and she smiled. They had been dating for three months. Neither of them wanted to rush anything; they just wanted to let their relationship develop as it did and see what happened along the way.


	10. Chapter 9: An ending and a beginning

Chapter 9: An end and a new beginning.

One month later…

A couple of days after the sonograms, Charlie and Zoe had gone back to Paris. Their friends missed them dearly, but they knew that Charlie and Zoe loved it in Paris.

Kate was now 5 months pregnant with about 4 months to go and Lisa had 5 months to go.

Early one morning, Kate woke up Donna and led her into the living room. "Donna, you won't believe what I've just done! I've just gone and found adoption papers!"

As it was so early in the morning, it took Donna a couple of minutes to work out what Kate was saying, then she exclaimed, "Oh, my goodness, Kate! Are you expecting Josh to propose to you?"

"Not expecting-hoping, there's a difference."

"Kate, you said 'no' once-what makes you think we'd try again?" Donna was astonished.

However, over at Josh, Kate and Naomi's flat, Josh was showing Sam the engagement ring and asking how he should propose to Kate. Sam was as stunned as Donna was. "Josh, if she said 'no', the first time, what makes you think that she'd say yes now?"

A couple of weeks later…

Late one evening, Kate was rushed into hospital. Naomi was left with Donna and Mallory, as Josh rushed to the hospital to see what was wrong with Kate.

After an hour of being examined, Dr. Leigh announced that Kate and the baby was going to be fine.

As they walked home, they sat down and sat down on a bench. "I was so scared; I thought I was going to loose you and our daughter." There was a pause, then he kneeled down onto the floor in front of her and whispered, "Kate, marry me."

"What?"

"Kate, Dr. Leigh said that your pregnancy is a difficult on. Something could happen to you or to our daughter and, if something does happen, I want you to be my wife. This baby is going to be my daughter and I want the four of us to a real family: you, me, Naomi and the baby." He reached into his pocket and produced a ring. "Donna, Sam and CJ helped me to pick it and promised me that they would remain silent."

"And they did." Kate laughed, before looking into his eyes, his expression serious. "I love you, Josh, and this is the second time you've asked me to marry you. This time, my answer is…yes, I will marry you."

Glee filling Josh, he slipped the engagement ring onto her ring finger and they shared a passionate kiss, after telling the other that they loved them.

Early the next morning, Josh and Kate went to Donna and Mallory's flat and told Naomi that they were engaged to be married, but not to tell any of her aunts or uncles yet, because they wanted to tell her. Naomi herself was delighted with the news and was very happy that they were going to be a 'real family'.

That evening, after telling: Noah, Ruth, Josephine, Leo and Kate's brothers, when all of the friends (besides Charlie) were gathered in Donna and Mallory's flat, Josh and Kate stood up and the latter announced: "Hello, we have an announcement."

Looking worried, Donna asked, "What is it? Is there something wrong?"

Josh smiled at his best friend's concern, but shook his head. "No, don't worry, it isn't anything bad. We're engaged to be married!"

The entire room erupted in applause and congratulations.

"What about the baby?" inquired CJ.

Sitting down, as she could not stand for a long time, Kate replied, "Well, Josh and I should be married by then, but Josh has already signed adoption papers, so that she's his if she's born before we're married."

"When's the wedding?" asked Sam, wondering if it was going to be before his and Lisa's.

Kate laughed at Sam's face. "Look, it's going to be very small-with just family and close friends. It's going to be in about a weak. Our parents are going to come here in a couple of days to help us get everything organised, even though, we don't need them. Donna, if you want to help us, then you're more than welcome."

Donna smiled and nodded, enthusiastically; she loved planning weddings and the fact that it was the wedding of her best friend made her even more eager to plan it, as she wanted it to be perfect, as she was sure that they did.

A weak later…

Kate now only had 3 months to go, She, Donna, Mallory and CJ were planning the wedding; whilst she knew that Josh was interested, she also knew that all he wanted to do was marry her. If it had been up to him, they would have eloped, but Kate didn't want that and it was only the women who understood that-and Joe, who was very romantic.

Lisa refused to help with Josh and Kate's wedding, as she was not pleased that their wedding was being paid more attention to that her and Sam's second wedding and she thought it was because Josh had managed to turn his fiancée and friends against her.

In reality, it was because they all thought that Sam was making a grave mistake marrying Lisa for the second time and they were also aware that Kate was very ill. Since last weak, she had been using a wheelchair, as she was not strong enough to walk.

Ruth, Noah and Josephine had come to stay in Washington about a weak before and Kate's brothers were now in Washington also, all very excited for the wedding.

The wedding day…

It was the job of Mallory, CJ and Josephine and Ruth to ensure that Kate was ready and the job of Donna, Noah and Leo to ensure that Josh was ready.

On the morning of the wedding, Kate was staying with Donna and Mallory, at their flat. "I can't believe I'm getting married today!" she whispered, as she walked into the kitchen and sat down next to Mallory. "Where's Donna?" she asked.

"She's gone to Josh's to help him get ready. Now, eat up so that we can get your hair and make-up done, then we can get you into that dress."

Kate smiled; she had never felt this happy in her entire life.

An hour later, Kate's hair and make-up was done and so were Mallory and C.J's. Josephine walked into the room and asked Mallory if she could have a moment alone with her daughter. Understanding, Mallory and CJ nodded and left the room, closing the door behind them.

"Come here, sweetheart." Josephine instructed, as she slipped Kate's wedding dress over her head. Once it was on, the two of them stood in front of the mirror, with tears in their arms, holding each other. "I remember the day you were born, Catherine-Françoise, and now here we are, with you almost married and almost a mother too. Your daughter is a very lucky girl to have a mother such as you and a father such as Josh. You're lucky you found him. My brother's to thank for that, of course. Your dad would be so proud."

Kate turned to her mum and fell into her arms, crying with tears of happiness. "I love you, Mum. I always be your little girl."

"Yes, you will be."

For a while, they stood here, holding each other, feeling their bodies rise and fall with the other, feeling the bond which they shared.

Just as she was about to move away, Josephine felt her daughter squirm in her arms and she knew that something was wrong. "What's wrong, Kate?" she asked.

Looking at her mum, with fear in her eyes, Kate whispered, "Mum, there's something wrong with the baby. I can feel it."

In Josh, Kate and Naomi's flat, the telephone rang and Sam answered it. His face paled and he looked at his sister, communicating that there was something wrong.

"Josh," Donna said, as she walked into his bedroom, to see Naomi trying to do her dad's tie and failing miserably, "Josh, it's Kate."

Turning to face her, Josh asked what was wrong with her and Donna relayed to him what Mallory and CJ had told her, which was what they had been told by Josephine.

Josh grabbed his daughter's coat which was on his bed and told her, "Nai, we have to go to the hospital. There's something wrong with your sister."

"With the baby? Is my sister going to be okay? Will Kate?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. Let's get your shoes on and let's go." Josh planted a kiss on her head, then looked at Donna, as if searching for answers. Donna gave him a reassuring smile and whispered, "Kate and the baby are going to be fine." As she said this, she was trying to convince herself and Josh and neither was working.

The emergency room in which Kate was situated was filled with people: Mallory, CJ, Leo, Josephine, Elizabeth, Ruth, Noah and her three elder brothers. The door opened and Josh burst in, followed by Donna, Sam and Naomi.

Naomi ran over to her almost-stepmother and hugged her tightly. As she did this, Kate made eye contact with her almost-husband and she mouthed 'I love you' and he did the same back.

The door opened and Dr. Leigh entered. Naomi made to sit down next to Kate, but Josh shook his head and indicated Donna, so the 8-year-old nodded and stood next to Donna, who wrapped her arms around the very scared little girl.

Dr. Leigh examined Kate and then announced: "Well, there's nothing serious, but we'll keep you here over night. The baby's heart rate is very high, his"-

"Her heart rate; it's a girl." Josh interrupted, as he took hold of Kate's hands and squeezed them.

"Yes, I'm sorry. Her heart rate is very high and, in your womb, she's chocking. It isn't serious, but we'll monitor it. Now, I suggest that some of you go and get some rest, this could take a long time."

Kate turned her head to her fiancée and said, "No, Josh, you need to get some rest."

"I'll rest in here, when you rest." Josh smiled, kissing her hands, which caused her to smile.

An hour later, only Josh was in the room with Kate, as all of the others had gone to buy some lunch at the refectory which was in the hospital.

Kate was asleep, so Josh, in the chair beside her, decided to try to get some sleep as well, as he knew that he couldn't sleep when she was awake. He was glad the Donna and Leo were looking after Naomi, as she was very shaken up and he knew that he would be of no comfort to her in the state he was in at the moment.

However, his rest was interrupted when he heard Kate crying in pain. Opening his eyes, he saw her clutching the bed almost for support and strength. "What's wrong, do you feel sick?"

Shaking her head, Kate murmured, "Josh, something's wrong."

"Nurse!" Josh called into the corridor in a panicked voice, before turning back to his fiancée and whispered, "It's going to be okay. You and the baby are going to be fine."

Dr. Leigh entered, followed by the others, who were all looking very worried.

After examining Kate, Dr. Leigh announced, "Kate, we have to take you to surgery. You're going to have the baby now."

"What?" Josh asked, panic evident in his voice, "what are you talking about?"

"She's going to have to have an emergency section," replied Dr. Leigh, "we'll come to get you in five minutes, Kate." She left the room and with her exit, followed a deadly silence, besides Kate's heavy breathing. She held her arms out to her almost-stepdaughter, hugged her and whispered, "Everything's going to be fine, Naomi. Don't worry. I'm going to be fine and so is your baby sister."

The 8-year-old girl nodded and walked back to Donna and clung to her as if for strength and support.

Josephine, Luca, Michael and Joseph knelt down beside Kate and all whispered a prayer, then Leo, Mallory and Elizabeth all gave her a hug, telling her that everything was going to be alright.

Finally, Kate's eyes met Josh's. He sat back down in the chair next to her and kissed her gently. When their lips parted, Kate whispered, "I love you, Josh Lyman."

"I love you, too." Her fiancée whispered back, whipping away the tears from her eyes and ignoring the ones which were forming in his own. "You and our daughter are gonna be fine, alright?"

Kate nodded. "I know. I just have to stay strong and believe that and then we can get married and be husband and wife. It's kind of weird that this is our wedding day. We should be married by now!" She laughed and so did Josh, as they held each other close; they knew that there was a chance that the baby may not survive and they wanted to hold onto what they had for as long as possible.

Kissing her head, then looking into her eyes, Josh stated, "No matter what happens, you and I are going to get married." They kissed again and then threw their arms around each other and hugged again, Kate burying her face in Josh's shoulders.

At the sight of this, Josephine and Mallory were in tears, as were Donna and CJ and Leo was also feeling very emotional; he was very close to both Josh and Kate and he prayed that their child would be alright.

The door opened and Kate was wheeled out of the emergency room and into an operating room.

A nurse came through and showed them to a private waiting room, where they could wait until the procedure was over. Josh pulled Naomi onto his knee and held her close, as if holding her for energy. Donna sat beside them and Josephine on the other side.

No-one said a word.

An hour later, at about 7:OO PM, Naomi was asleep in Josh's arms and she was passed into the arms of Noah and Ruth, who were very worried about their son sleeping, as he looked exhausted. Donna had managed to get him to eat something, but that was it.

The door opened and Dr. Leigh entered. She was looking very stressed, but also relieved. "Mr. Lyman, we managed to get the baby out. She's in an incubator right now, because she can't breathe independently, but apart from that, she should be fine. You can see her if you wish."

"What about Catherine-Françoise, Kate, my daughter?" Josephine demanded. She knew that her daughter hated being called by her full name, but at the moment, she didn't care. Leo and Elizabeth, who were now sat at either side of their sister, held her hands and Elizabeth also held the hands of her nephews, Kate's brothers.

Dr. Leigh sighed. "I'm so sorry. There were complications in surgery. We got the baby out, but"-

"But, what?" Luca asked, his voice raw.

Glancing over at Josh, who was sitting with Donna, Dr. Leigh bit her lip. "There were complications and Kate died. I'm so sorry."

A silence unlike any other followed. Dr. Leigh exited the room, after telling Josh where he could find his daughter if and when he wanted to do so.

Several people burst into fits of tears, but Josh remained completely still, feeling dumb. Donna squeezed his hand and whispered something which no-one else could hear heard.

About half an hour later, Josh, Donna, Sam and CJ went to see the baby, as Naomi was asleep and none of the others wanted to go home to be alone, or in Leo and Elizabeth's case, ensure that their sister was alright. Ruth and Noah had taken Naomi back to their hotel, as they knew that their son would not be able to care for her at the moment.

The tiny baby, lying in the incubator, was the spitting image of Kate and Josh saw that straight away and it made his heart ache.

He sat there for ages, then Sam asked, "Do you have a name?"

Josh bit his lip and whispered, "Catherine. Catherine-Françoise Lyman."


	11. Chapter 10: Lull after darkness

Chapter 10: Lull after darkness.

That night Josh spent in the hospital, watching over his daughter, refusing to leave her side if any one suggested it. The name was Catherine-Françoise Lyman, named after her mother.

Josephine didn't like the idea of the baby being named after her daughter, but she also knew that she could not image what Josh was going through and that, if naming his daughter after his fiancée provided him comfort, then that was fine.

The next morning, CJ telephoned Charlie and Zoe and told them what had happened to Kate. They were shocked and saddened and told CJ to tell Josh that if he needed them, they would be on the next plane home. Charlie also said that he would let Amy know so that she didn't say anything which would upset either Josh or Naomi.

CJ went back into the room, where Josh was sitting with Donna and Sam, watching his daughter.

"Josh, I just spoke to Charlie and Zoe and Charlie said he'll speak to Amy." CJ informed her friend.

Turning to her, Josh asked, in an angry voice, "And why would Charlie talk to Amy?" Donna and Sam threw CJ a look, which she knew was their way of telling her not to take Josh's tone personally. In heighsite, she thought she bringing up Amy had not been the best thing to do, but it just hadn't crossed her mind.

"Charlie just thought that letting Amy know would be a good idea." replied CJ, but she knew that Josh wasn't really listening; he had gone back to watching Catherine-Françoise. "Sam, do you want to go and get something to eat?"

Understanding that CJ thought that it would be a good idea for Josh and Donna to be alone, Sam agreed, picked up his coat and left the room.

As soon as Sam and CJ were gone and Josh was alone with Donna and the baby, his head fell into his hands and he ran his hands threw his hands repeatedly, trying to steady his breathing. Donna left her chair and knelt down next to him, trying to get him to look at her.

Josh raised his eyes to meet hers and he whispered, "If Catherine dies—Donna, I don't know what I'm going to do. How I am going to be able to take of Naomi if I can't take care of myself? Hell, if Catherine does live, I'll have her and Nai and I'll be raising them alone. How am I ever going to do that?"

"I think you need to give yourself more credit," answered his best friend in a gentle voice, "you raised Naomi alone for six years and she's a wonderful little girl, isn't she, so you will be able to raise Catherine. There's no reason why you shouldn't be able do to that if you raised Nai. And you're not going to be alone, okay. We're going to be with every step of the way, as are Leo and Kate's mum and brothers."

Rubbing his eyes, Josh wiped away the tears which had formed in his eyes. "If it weren't for me, Kate wouldn't have died."

Donna gave no reply, but pulled him down onto the ground and into a hug and he cried. To see her best friend going through this much pain made her heart ache and she knew that none of this was Kate's fault, but she also knew that there was a chance that Catherine-Françoise would not survive and she wasn't sure how Josh-or Kate's family-would deal with that. What made matters worse that Kate had died on the day of their wedding and she and Josh had not been married. She was sure that, on some levels, the fact that Josh had not been widowed made things easier, but she also knew that Josh would regret not marrying Kate sooner.

Elsewhere in the hospital, Josephine brought herself a cup of coffee and found a table where she sat alone; Lucas had gone home and was avoiding his family until the funeral, he had done the same after their dad had died, but Michael and Joseph were at Leo's house and were with Mallory, as Josephine had told them and her sister that she wanted to be alone.

"Hey, Josie." She looked up from her cup of coffee and saw her brother. He sat down opposite her and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Like my daughter's just died!" Josephine snapped, then bit her lip and shook her head. "I just-I have no idea how Noah and Ruth got through this and Joanie was so much younger than Kate."

Leo sighed, knowing that no matter what he said, it would not help to ease his sister's pain. "Well, Noah and Ruth have said that if you want to speak to them, you're very welcome." When Josephine made no repsonce, he employed another tactic. "Have you gone to see the baby? She's very ill."

Josephine shook her head and replied, in a short voice. "No, I haven't seen her."

"I think Josh would love it if you would go down there and see her"-

"I don't give a damb what that man wants!" Josephine spat. "I should never have introduced Kate to him all those years ago and you shouldn't have encouraged their relationship! He's a bad egg. I mean, he has a daughter from another woman, for crying out loud, so how I didn't think that he was a bad piece of work, I have no idea, Leo!"

Staring at his sister, shocked, Leo asked, "Are you crazy, Josie? Josh loved Kate and she loved him!"

"Did he love her as much as he loved the mother of his daughter? No, I bet he didn't. I hate that man, Leo and I don't want anything to do with that baby! I hate Joshua Lyman for what he did to my baby!"

"Do you not think that Josh has been through enough in his life without you hating him for something which wasn't his fault? He's probably blaming himself right now and Donna is probably trying to convince him otherwise."

Josephine stood up and asked, "What has he 'been through' then, Leo?"

Anger filling his body, Leo retorted, "Well, first of all, his sister died when he was 12 and he watched, knowing that she was going to die! Then, his parents separated, then he had mental problems and addiction as a consequence of Joanie's death! He and his girlfriend were in love, but then she broke up with him and broke his heart. After Naomi was born, the doctors thought that she was going to die, just like they think Catherine is! And now, he's lost his fiancée, a woman whom he loved! So, fine, if you hate him, do it in a way which causes the least pain to him, because I swear if you cause him any more pain, you will know my wrath! Kate loved him with all of her heart, so much so that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, so show her some respect, Josephine, and if you can't do that, then leave!"

With that, he stood up and stormed out of the room, leaving his sister wondering what she should do.

That evening, Donna found Leo and said that she thought that Josh needed to go home for a couple of hours. She went to get a coffee for herself and Josh.

Just as Leo was going to and talk to Josh himself, Noami ran up to him and hugged him. She was followed by Noah and Ruth, who greeted Leo and asked how their son was.

"Not good, he's been here for over 24 hours, Donna thinks he needs to sleep, but he won't leave Catherine."

Ruth sighed, then led her granddaughter to see her dad and half- sister.

"Daddy!" Naomi cried with joy, as she ran over to Josh and threw herself into his arms and then hugged Donna. It was then that she saw the baby. Almost chocking on her words, she sat on Donna's knee and asked, "Daddy, is that Catherine?"

Sipping his coffee, her dad replied in the affirmative, giving his mum a kiss as she sat beside him.

Staring at her new sister, whom she was sure she was going to love, Naomi fell back into Donna's arms and asked, "Was I ever that small?"

"You were smaller, Nai." replied her dad, smiling.

The room fell into silence and the four people sat in silence, watching the baby. Donna found herself nearly falling asleep and Josh noticed. "Donna, go home. Get some sleep."

Shaking her head, Donna answered, "No, I won't sleep until you do."

"Donna"-

"I'm serious, Josh," snapped Donna, looking him in the eye, "you can't stay here forever, watching Catherine. I'm sure she knows that you love and I-I'm sure Kate does too, wherever she is."

"She's in Heaven." stated Naomi, in almost a whisper.

Leo and Noah walked in and Naomi jumped up and ran into her grandfather's arms, despite the fact that she had spent most of the day with him. Noah and Leo chuckled, then Noah turned to his son. "Joshua, your mother and I will stay here with Catherine for a while. Go and get some sleep-or Donna will collapse of exhaustion." He knew that the only way to make Josh move was to play on his affection for the people about whom he cared.

Josh finally gave in and, after kissing Naomi, he and Donna walked out of the room, with their arms around each other in order to support and comfort each other.

Sam walked into Donna and Mallory's flat to see if he could find any food, as he and Lisa had run out of most of theirs. As he entered, he heard shouting coming from Mallory's bedroom. It was Mallory and Rick-they were arguing.

Sam hit behind the door, as Rick stormed out of Mallory's bedroom, with his arms full of his belongings and he left the flat, slamming the door behind him.

Emerging from behind the door before Mallory walked into the kitchen, unable to resist, he asked, "What that Ron-no, sorry, Rick? Are things ok between the two of you?"

Mallory walked over to the kettle and boiled it, before turning back to Sam. "No, things aren't okay. He, as I discovered quite recently-is a complete arce of man, so I dumped him."

"Didn't you love him?"

"No, I fancied him, but I didn't love him." She turned back to the kettle and poured herself and Sam some coffee as they were both very tired.

Sitting down and accepting the coffee, even though he knew that Mallory made the worse coffee in the entire world, Sam asked, "Where are your cousins?"

"Well, Luca's gone back home and Michael and Joseph are at Dad's. I don't think Aunt Josie wants anything to do with the baby." She sighed, then asked, "How is Catherine-Françoise?"

In an attempt to avoid drinking the coffee, Sam replied, "She isn't doing well. But Naomi was smaller than her when she was born and she's fine, so there's always hope."

"How's Josh?"

"Devastated, I think. I left him with Donna earlier, because I thought that she'd be able to get time to talk. He's really worried about how he's going to raise the two girls, if Catherine does survive."

There was a silence, then Mallory asked, "So, how are things between you and Lisa?"

Sam smiled. "They're going really well and Demi's great. She's going to have a brother and a sister in a couple of months. Do you want to have kids, I mean, some day, obviously not now?"

Sipping her coffee, Mallory replied, "Well, I guess I do. I mean, none of my cousins are gonna have kids and I-I want my dad to be a grandfather, as I know that he wants that and it would be nice, you know?"

"How many cousins do you have?"

"Well, there're Aunt Josie's kids: Lucas, Michael and Joseph and of course, Kate, then from Aunt Elizabeth, there's Seamus and Liam. Josie's dad's elder sister and Elizabeth's his younger sister. I was closest to age to Kate, Josie's last child, whereas I was about 10 and then 12 when Seamus and Liam were born. Liam was in the army. He was reported as missing in action and hasn't been heard of since, so my family has been through a lot and now this has happened to Kate and…" she trailed off and buried her hands in her hands, sobbing.

Gently, Sam removed her hands from her face and whispered, "Mallory, if you got through the divorce of your parents, you can get through the death of your cousin."

"I guess." Mallory murmured, as she looked in Sam's eyes in order to find comfort, which she did find.

The door opened and Donna came in, looking exhausted.

"Hey, Donna," her brother stood up and gave her a hug, "I thought you were at the hospital with Josh."

Sitting down, Donna nodded. "I was and then Josh's dad convinced him to go home and get a couple of hours' sleep."

"How is he?" inquired Mallory, the concern evident in both her face and voice.

Sighing, Donna replied, "He'll be fine. Shoot, I need to take out the rubbish. I'll go and do that now!"

As Josh entered his flat, he heard his telephone ring. Thinking that it was about Catherine-Françoise, he grabbed it and held it to his ear."

"Hi, Josh. It's me."

Josh froze, as he would recognise that voice anywhere.

In a tight voice, he replied, "Hi, Amy."

"Josh, you sound exhausted. I-I don't know what to say about Kate. Charlie told me and I-I just I'm so sorry. How are you and don't give me any of that 'I'm fine, crap', I know you too well."

That made him smile. "I'm dealing with it." He ran his hands through his hair. "God, Amy, what I am going to do with Catherine dies? What am I going to do if she lives and I'll have to raise her and Nai? How am I going to do that?"

"I'll have Naomi for more weekends, ok? We'll figure something out."

"There's no 'we' in this, Amy!" Josh snapped, a little unnecessarily. "Sorry, I'm tired."

"I know. Listen, if you need anything and I mean anything, let me know." Her voice was kind and sincere.

They hung up and it was only then that Josh saw Donna standing beside him.

"Was that Amy?" she asked, watching her best friend closely.

Josh just nodded, then pulled her into a hug.

He ended up sleeping on the sofa and Donna in his bed, as he didn't want to be alone.


	12. Chapter 11: Moving on

Chapter 11: Moving on…

Four months later…

Lisa now only had a month later before the twins were born and everybody was very excited, including Lisa and Sam, although Lisa was finding this pregnancy harder than carrying Demi. Demi was not about eight months old and looking like her mother more every day. Sam and Lisa were engaged to be married a couple of weeks after the twins were born.

Kate had been buried 4 months previously. Josephine had requested that she be buried in the Connecticut graveyard, not for Josh, but because she thought that that was what Kate would have wanted. Also, her gravestone read "Catherine-Françoise 'Kate' Lyman", as Josephine knew that Kate wanted to take Josh's name upon their marriage.

Catherine-Françoise, who was now 4 months old, had been released from G.W a couple of weeks before. There was no longer the fear that she was not going to live, but the doctors predicated that she would never be able to walk. She was already greatly loved; by her dad, half-sister and her other family. However, Josephine and Kate's brothers had not even been to see their granddaughter and niece since her birth, a fact which deeply bothered Josh.

Both Josh and Leo had agreed that Josh would go back to work when Catherine-Françoise was about eight months old, at which point her care would be placed in Josh's parents, as Josh didn't want her to go to nursery until she was strong enough. In the mean time, Sam was doing all of Josh's work which required him to be present and Josh was doing as much work as he could from home, with which Leo was very impressed.

Naomi was already completely devoted to her younger half-sister, as everyone else was. She spent every waking moment with her, but the people baby Catherine-Françoise knew best were Josh, Naomi and Donna. Noah and Ruth saw the girls almost every weak end, whereas Donna saw her everyday.

During the past few months, Josh's main support system hadn't been his parents or Leo-it had been Donna and Joe, who had gone out of their way on more than one occasion to help him and the girls. CJ and Sam had, too, but not as much and Charlie and Zoe were still in Paris. Naomi was also spending some more time with her mother.

One Saturday morning, when Josh was giving Naomi and Catherine their breakfast and Sam was there for a reason unknown to him, there was a knock on the door. Sam stood up and answered it, as Josh was busy preparing food for his daughters, both of whom were very hungry.

He opened the door to find his mother, Marie Moss. Marie was Spanish, but she had blonde hair, like Donna, whereas Sam looked like their dad, Andrew Seaborn. As children, Sam had always been closer to his dad and Donna to their mum and it still was that way. Now, their dad lived in Canada and Marie was back in Italy.

"Hi, Mum." Sam smiled, as he embraced his mother in an awkward hug. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Josh watching him, who was obviously confused, and threw him a look.

Marie held her son at arm's length and asked, "Well, how's Lisa?" One could tell that she was Spanish, because of her accent, although her English was amazing and so was Donna's Spanish and French, but Sam had always refused to learn the languages of his parents, as he felt that he was American, unlike Donna, who was Canadian.

They walked into the flat and Sam replied, "Lisa's great, thanks. She only has a month left until the twins are born, so we're excited."

Smiling, Marie observed her son, then her eyes fell upon Josh and his two daughters, the eldest of whom was watching the newcomer intently, whilst the other was squirming around in her dad's arms.

"Josh," Marie began, "I was so sorry to hear about what happened to your fiancée, Kate. I really am sorry. Who's this?" she smiled, indicating the baby in his arms.

Naomi stood up and replied, "That's my little half-sister, Catherine-Françoise. She's named after Kate."

Marie stayed to talk with Josh and Naomi for a while, then she left the flat in order to go and find her daughter.

As soon as Catherine-Françoise was down in her play-pen and Naomi was in her bedroom, Josh turned to his former roommate and asked, "What was that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your relationship with your mother. Are you not close?"

Sighing, Sam paced the kitchen, then replied, "No. I-I'm not close to my mother, I've always been closer to Dad." When he saw that Josh was expecting more, he elaborated. "I guess, when Donna was born, I was jealous; she became the baby of the family and I was sort of passed by and there was only two years between us…She was always Mother's favourite, because she was a girl and Mother had always wanted to have a daughter. I was jealous of Donna. You understand that, don't you?"

Josh shook his head. "No, I don't. How can you not be close to your mother because she was closer to Donna?"

"Donna was the child whom she'd always wanted! She wanted to learn Spanish and French, in order to embrace her roots, whereas I didn't care. Donna was born in Canada, therefore, she was Canadian, like Dad, whereas I was born in America, like neither of my parents and I hated the idea of having to learn Spanish and French! Besides, you of all people, should not be having this conversation with me!"

"What do you mean?"

"You have a terrible relationship with your sister; you haven't seen her for years and Naomi's never met her, so don't you dare lecture me on family stability!" He knew that he had gone too far and he was sure that Josh had a good reason for being estranged from his sister, but he was also trying to defend himself.

The look of hurt and disappointment on Josh's face and in his eyes broke his heart and he regretted saying what he had said. He couldn't even imagine what Josh had been through in the past couple of months and he had no idea how he had coped with any of it. He was also aware that he had not been very supportive, in comparison to how supportive his sister had been.

Meanwhile, at Donna and Mallory's flat, Donna and Joe were sitting together, having breakfast, as Mallory had gone out to have breakfast with Leo. Joe's sons were spending the weekend with Iris and her girlfriend.

"You're not eating much," remarked Joe to his girlfriend, "are you okay?"

Smiling at her boyfriend's concern, Donna nodded and answered, "I'm fine, honestly. I'm just…worried about Josh."

Taking hold of her hand, Joe commented, "Well, you won't be able to help Josh if you let yourself get ill."

Donna smiled again and squeezed his hand and he returned the pressure. Their eyes met and they sat in silence, enjoying the company of the other. "You know," she whispered, "I was with my ex-fiancée for years, but I've never felt about him the-the way I feel about you right now." She bit her lip, as she was very nervous, but forced herself to maintain eye contact.

"Well, this may come as a shock to you, and I've only ever been with one woman, but I-I have very strong feelings for you. In fact I think that I may be f-"

Joe was interrupted by a knocking on the door and Donna sighed, knowing that the moment was gone, but Joe cupped her face and whispered, "We can finish this later." He kissed her on the check and then they stood up to answer the door.

Donna opened the door and found her mum there. She enveloped her into a hug, welcoming her in Spanish and Joe stood back, in order to give them privacy.

The two women came apart and, for the first time, Marie noticed the young man who was in her daughter's flat and she recognised him. "Are you Joe Quincy, Renée's son?"

"Yes, ma'am." nodded Joe, unsure if Donna's mum knew that he and Donna were dating.

Smiling, Marie inquired, "Are you helping her with some legal problem, your mother tells me you're a lawyer now. Yes, Donnatella, I've moved back to Washington."

"Why, Madre?"

Marie laughed. "Well , my two children are here and my granddaughter-soon to be another granddaughter and a grandson!" She smiled to herself.

Joe threw Donna a look and she nodded. "Erm-Mum, when I was in secondary school, do you remember how I fancied Joe?"

"Of course I remember, dear. You know, Donnatella, you really need to find yourself a boyfriend; you're a lovely girl, you'll find someone."

Biting her lip, when Marie was looking away, Donna walked over to Joe and put her arm around him and her mum turned around to see them standing together, with their arms around each other. As a couple. Shock passed through her face and she asked, in a slightly faint voice, "Joseph, don't you have kids, how old are they?"

"Nic is 9 and Peter's 6. Before you ask, Clara died when Peter was 2 and Nic was 6-four years ago, so it's been a long time." Joe stated, in a clear voice.

Marie smiled and conceded, "Well, as long as you're happy, Donnatella, that's the main thing. You two aren't…living together, are you?"

Fully aware of what her mother was asking without having to directly ask it, Donna smiled, shaking her head. "No, Madre. We're not, but I am crazy about him!" she professed, a little annoyed that her mum had interrupted her and Joe earlier when they had been having an intimate conversation.

The three of them sat down and Marie asked, "So, Joseph, you're Canadian, do you speak French?"

"Yes, I do, although my mum isn't French-Canadian, my dad was and so's my stepdad, so I learnt French. The boys are bilingual, too, so that's great!"

As soon as her mum and her boyfriend were engaged in a conversation, Donna stood up and left her flat.

As soon as her daughter was gone, Marie turned to Joe and stated, "As long as you make my daughter happy, then I'm happy."

Biting his lip, Joe observed, "I could be completely wrong here, ma'am, but do you have reservations about my relationship with Donna?"

"Of course I do. You were married and she engaged to be married; you've both lived with other people." She sighed. "Donna tends to seek out serious relationships, because she wants to have kids and you already have kids and you've been married before."

"Well, I haven't had the chance to tell your daughter this, but I love her and I want to be with her."

Before Marie could make any kind of remark, Josh walked in and asked where Donna was. Joe threw him a look and mouthed: 'Run, now, the physio out.'

"Ah, Josh," Marie turned around and asked, "How many woman have you lived with?"

Confused, Josh exchanged a look with Joe, then said, "I have to go, it was nice talking to you."

When he arrived back in his flat, he found Donna. "Where are the girls?" she asked.

"Mal and Leo took them to the park," Josh answered, before asking, with a smirk on his face, "does your mother always ask people how many people they've lived with?"

Groaning, Donna nodded. "Yes! Yes, she does. It was her code answer of asking if Joe and I have…you know." She bit her lip, then asked, "Josh, when you and Amy first consummated your relationship, you knew that you loved each other?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah. Why?"

"Before we were interrupted by my madrè, I think that Joe was going to tell me that he loved me and I was going to say the same thing back to him, but we were interrupted and now I don't know what to do."

"Tell him later. If you really want to say it, then tell him. What else is wrong?"

Donna sighed and replied, "Well, Joe and I have both lived with other people and that makes me more nervous. How can I ever live up to Clara, his wife?"

Josh smiled. "You do that by just being yourself; you're amazing, Donna. I think you need to start believing in what everybody else can see."

That evening, as Sam walked into his kitchen, he saw Lisa sitting at the table, looking miserable.

"What's wrong, are you in pain?" Sam rushed over to her, terrified that he was going to lose Lisa the way Josh had lost Kate.

Shaking her head, Lisa replied, "No, I'm fine. Sam, I don't want to marry you again."

Sam sat in silence staring at her. "Why? I thought you loved me?"

"We keep doing this-kidding ourselves, but the truth is we're not the same people as we were when we fell in love, when we were 18. I'm sorry, Sam, but I can't marry you again. I'm sorry." She suddenly froze and whispered, "I've just had a contraction, Sam. Get me to the hospital, now!"

With tears in his eyes, Sam grabbed Demi, her coat and led Lisa to the car.

"God, I thought my mother was hard work!" Joe exclaimed, after dropping Marie off at her rental property and he and Donna were finally alone.

Smiling, Donna laughed. "She isn't that bad!" She then said something in Spanish, which Joe did not understand.

They sat together and held hands. "Thank you for being so patient with her, Joe. I know what she can be like and she's my mother."

Taking hold of her face in the way he had gone all of those hours before, Joe smiled at her and looked her in the eyes. "You know, before I was going to tell you something, I'll tell you now, as it's as good a time as ever. I'm falling in love with you, Donna. I love you."

Feeling tears forming in her eyes, Donna smiled and whispered, "Well, I love you too, Joe, more than I ever loved that ex-fiancée of mine."

They leaned in for a kiss, but just then, the phone rang and Donna knew that she had to answer. After listening and replying, Donna told Joe, "We have to go; Lisa's having the twins, but we can finish this later, can't we?" She smiled.

"Of course we can."

They grabbed their coats and locked the flat door behind them. Outside of the door, Joe pulled Donna towards him and kissed her passionately and she kissed him back. Their lips parted and they looked into each other's eyes.


	13. Chapter 12: I ache for you

Chapter 12: I ache for you.

Naomi and Catherine-Françoise were left with Leo and Josh and Mallory made their way to G.W, after receiving a call from Sam. What confused Josh was that Sam had sounded upset, so he was hoping that there was nothing wrong with Lisa or with the twins.

He and Mallory found Donna, CJ and Joe in the waiting room and they sat with them. Josh noticed how Donna and Joe had their arms around each other and he was glad that they had declared their love for each other.

"Hey," they turned around and saw Charlie and Zoe, running towards them, holding hands. They were embraced with hugs, then CJ observed, "Hang on, you're wearing wedding rings."

Smiling, Charlie replied, "Yeah, we just decided what was the point in waiting to be with each other, why not just seize the day and get married? We are going to have a reception, mostly for our families more than for us." He and Zoe kissed, then he added, "Oh, yeah, Amy's in town."

Josh's smile fell and he looked down at the ground.

In the labour room, Sam was sitting next to Lisa, wracking his brains over what to say to her.

"When did you decide that our relationship didn't work?"

Lisa bit her lip and replied, "I guess a part of me has always known. I am glad that we have kids together, but we just can't be married again. I'm sorry, Sam."

Sam stood up and excused himself. He found Josh and Donna and told them what Lisa had told him. They were supportive, but he could tell that neither of them was shocked, as he had been. He wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse.

As Sam returned to the labour room, he heard and saw Lisa screaming and he called Donna in. Lisa was giving birth and doctors were swarming around everywhere.

Half an hour later, both of the twins had been safely delivered and they were healthy. Instead of one boy and one girl, it was two boys and they looked like Sam. When he saw this, his heart ached as he knew that he wouldn't be very close to them and to Demi, because he and their mother wouldn't be together.

As he held one baby and Lisa passed one to Donna, he said, "Lisa, we need names."

Watching her first love with one of their sons in his arms, Lisa suggested, "How about Devon, for the one Donna's holding and Nathan, for the one you're holding?"

"Devon and Nathan Sherborn, that's nice."

"No," Lisa corrected, establishing eye contact with him, "Devon and Nathan Seaborn."

Frowning, Sam asked, "But why? You and I aren't together anymore?"

"They're still your children. Weather we're together or not, no-one will ever be able to take that away from you, Sam." She smiled, as she hoped that she was doing the right thing by breaking up with him.

A weak later…

It the day of Charlie and Zoe's reception, Demi, Nathan and Devon were at home with Lisa, as she was attending the reception.

As Josh, Donna and Joe arrived with Naomi and Catherine, a voice behind them said hello. A voice which neither Donna nor Joe recognised.

They turned around and saw Amy. She smiled and said, "Hello, J."

"Amy." He nodded to her in a civil way, but Donna and Joe could see the tension in his face, as he looked at his ex-girlfriend.

Joe walked away, taking the girls with him, as Josh and Amy obviously wanted some privacy. They walked into the house and sat down, opposite each other.

"So, how have you been, minus the obvious?" Amy asked, as she placed her laptop on her knee and logged in.

"Good, but I'm very tired; I'd forgotten what the 2am feeding was like."

Amy looked up and him and replied, "Look, if you did it eight years ago with our daughter, you can do it with Catherine. You're great with kids, I've seen the way Naomi looks at you. And don't give me any of the stuff about how you're not sure how you're going to raise your two girls when you're a man. Our daughter's fine, so you obviously didn't screw her up too much." She then turned around the computer and asked, "Do you know what this is?"

After looking at it, Josh answered, "It's a map of the United States, showing the percentage of single mothers in different states. What's your group's problem with the Bill Senator McGarry wants to introduce?"

"I'm glad you asked." smiled Amy, as she locked her laptop.

"Not half as glad as I am." muttered Josh, in a sarcastic tone.

Placing her laptop down on the floor, Amy replied, "You see, in the Bill, it speaks of single mothers and single fathers and that's not right."

"Why?"

Raising her voice, his ex-girlfriend replied, "In this country, about 90% of the single parents are woman and about 10% are men! The 90% tend to be because they've been abandoned by the father of the baby or they are divorced and the mother is the main carer and, of course, there's being widowed, which leaves mothers caring for their children! However, single fathers only tend to be single fathers because they've been widowed!"

Josh frowned and asked, "So, are you saying that, because they've been widowed, single fathers shouldn't receive help with their kids?"

"No, they should, just not as much as single mothers! We need to stop men from abandoning their partner and children, which is what leaves most single mothers single and it affects the children."

"Mothers abandon their children and partners too, Amy!" Josh snapped, looking directly into her eyes, trying to convey his message without saying it. "You say it as if men are the only ones who abandon, but what about when mothers leave their daughters? How do you think that affects them, making them think that they weren't good enough to be loved?" His voice was rather calm, as he knew that what he was saying would be more effective if he seemed to be calm.

Amy avoided his eyes and looked down at her hands. "I-I didn't abandon you and Naomi, I…" she trailed off, then looked up and stated, in a much stronger voice, "Look, I feel really strongly about this and I know you do too, J, so can we work together on this, instead of fighting over what happened about 4 years ago. It was 4, right?"

"No," Josh shook his head, with a stale voice, "No, Amy. Naomi's eight now and you left when she was 2, so six years ago." There was a silence, then Josh muttered, "I'm sorry, Amy." When she said nothing, he continued, "I'll talk to Leo and see what we can do."

As he stood up, Amy looked up at him and asked, "I know you're not physically at work, but would you mind getting back to me by the end of the day?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sure."

"Thank you." She smiled.

As he walked away, she watched him.

The reception ended at about 8:oo that night, so they all returned home.

As Donna and Joe entered Donna and Mallory's flat, Joe turned to his girlfriend and said, "You know, tonight there's a party and I've been told that I can bring a guest. I was thinking of taking you."

Donna hesitated, then shook her. "No, Joe. I love you, it isn't that. It's just I'm not ready to be looked at as Joe Quincy's girlfriend, by all of those people and by the press!"

"What about seizing the moment, Donna?" Joe was very hurt and Donna could tel. "Fine, I'll go by myself. Donna, please, work out what kind of relationship you want to be in. I love you too, but I don't want to spend our entire relationship trying to second-guess what you're thinking. I'll see you later."

He stormed out of the flat. Donna called his name, but he didn't turn or look back. She sat on the sofa and cried and when Mallory turned up, told her what had happened.

Josh put down the telephone after talking to Leo about the business part of his meeting with Amy.

There was a knock on the door and Sam walked in, with his suitcases. "Hey, Josh, Lisa and I have broken up. Could I stay with you for a while?"

His friend nodded, then asked, "Have you heard from Donna? She and Joe had an argument?"

Sitting down next to his friend, Sam sighed. "I know that she loves him and I'm sure that he loves her, but there's something about him that freaks me out. I don't know what it is. How was your meeting with Amy?"

"It was…not very productive."

"I have a question: How the Hell did you ever date her? I mean, seriously?"

Josh looked down at his hands and whispered, "I loved her, Sam. I loved her with all of my heart and she felt the same way about me."

"Why don't you get back together, then?"

Biting his lip, his friend answered, "It's complicated. Plus, Kate's only been dead for four months."

Sam nodded. "Yeah, but she'd want you to be happy, do you not think?"

There was a knock on the door. It was Donna, wearing a lovely dress. She asked if one of them could drive her to the Capital, where the party was taking place.

Hours later, Josh left Naomi and Catherine with Sam to go to see Amy at her flat.

"How did you know where I live?" she asked, and in return, he asked, "You've moved here?"

Sitting down on her sofa, Amy nodded. "Why are you here?" she asked, watching him carefully.

"I just came here to tell you that Leo is going to introduce another bill." He seemed nervous and Amy smiled at that.

"Well, why didn't you call?"

"I just came to tell you." He looked down at his feet, feeling suddenly awkward.

Fiddling with her skirt, Amy asked, "Are you dating Donna, Sam's sister?"

Josh turned to her, surprised. "What? No. She's my best friend, but that's it. What about you, are you seeing someone?"

Amy titled her head and smiled at him. Silence fell and the two of them sat there, looking at each other. Their eyes met and they could both feel a connection to the other one, until Josh said, "I have to go."

Standing up, Amy nodded. "Yes, you do. Wait," she reached into her bag and gave him a CD, "Happy Hanukkah. It's our song, Coldplay, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember. 'A message'?"

"Yes." Once again, their eyes met, then Josh walked away and walked out of the door.

As soon as he was outside, Amy turned on her CD played and played the song "Ache" which was one of her favourites. Then, out of the draw, she produced her most treasured possession: a photograph of her and Josh the day she had met his parents, when they had been dating for almost a year, before they had consummated their relationship.

_Isn't it strange, the way things can change? _

_The life that you lead turned on its head. Suddenly someone means more than you felt for. … Have I told you I ach? Have I told you I ache for you?_

Over at Joe's house, Donna and Joe were sitting together. "I didn't think you'd come."

"Well, I did." She smiled and kissed him. When their lips parted, she whispered, "I've never been this happy."

"You and I both."

Looking deep into his eyes, Donna started to slip off her clothes, Joe asked her what she was doing and she replied: "I'm seizing the moment."

They kissed passionately and held each other for a while, before Joe carried Donna into his bedroom.

At home, Josh was looking at the same photo Amy had been earlier and it was making his heart ache.

_I meant to say so many things along the way. Have I told you I ache for you?_

**Note: James Carrington 'Ache'. **


	14. Chapter 13: Mallory's ex-fiance'e

Chapter 13: The one with Mallory's ex-fiancée.

As everyone started to settle back down into their routines , especially Charlie and Zoe, as they had spent moths in Paris, France, everyone started to settle back down into the pattern of life. Naomi was now spending more time with her mum and even she could tell that her parents fancied each other, but her mum had a boyfriend, named Allan. Sam was back living with Josh, which he didn't like, because he wasn't near his children, but he did enjoy spending more time with Mallory and he was determined to make his feelings obvious and to ask her out on a date.

All of this lull, however, was ruined when a certain dentist moved to Washington. A dentist who had once been in love with, and engaged to be married to Mallory and the worse thing was that she had not seen him since she had walked out on their wedding day.

It was a Bank Holiday weekend and Noah and Ruth had insisted on treating their granddaughters by taking them both to Disney World and Ruth said that she would stay at home with Catherine-Françoise, as she was still too vulnerable to be near different people. Much to Donna and Sam's relief, Marie was away for the Bank Holiday, which meant that they would not have to entertain her.

All of them were sitting in the living room in Donna and Mallory's flat. Nicolas and Peter were there as well, playing together, as their dad was with Donna; the two boys had started to like Donna and they saw that she made their dad happy, in the way that Nic remembered their mum making him happy. Nic had had talk to his younger brother, to make him understand that their dad deserved to find happiness again and that Donna was a lovely person.

As Donna and C.J were preparing lunch, there was a knock on the door. Josh stood up and opened it.

It was a man with blonde hair and blue eyes, whom he vaguely recognised, but he didn't know from where.

As he walked into the flat, Josh saw Mallory's face fall and she looked as if she was about to cry and he suddenly realised who this man was. Donna, too, noticed her friend's distress and asked, "Mallory, are you OK?"

Mallory said nothing; she stood up and walked over to the man, her eyes searching his. In a tight voice, she asked, "Do you hate me?"

Shaking his head, he replied, "No, I could never hate you. I understand why you did what you did-you weren't ready to be with me in that way. I could never hate you, Mallory."

Sam, CJ, Charlie and Joe were watching in complete confusion, wondering who this man was; Donna knew because she had seen a photograph of him once and had asked Mallory who he was and she could tell by the way Josh was watching him.

Smiling, Mallory asked, "Sean, is it really you?"

"Yes, it's really me. How are you? I know you moved to Washington and I figured you'd be here."

Turning to her friends, Mallory announced, "Everyone, this is Sean McCarthy. Sean, this is: Josh, you remember him? This is: Donna, Sam, CJ, Charlie and Zoe and Joe Quincy, Donna's boyfriend, and his sons."

Sam felt a shiver go down his spine, along with a stab of jealousy run through his body, as he remembered who Sean was, the man whom Mallory had nearly married.

There was silence, then Sean asked Josh, "How are Naomi and Amy?"

"They're fine, thanks. Naomi's 8 now."

Sean just nodded, then he asked, "Mallory, could I have a word with you, in private?" he added in a hushed tone.

Mallory knew that Josh and Donna would not be happy if she said 'yes', but she wanted to go with him, so she picked up her coat and followed him outside.

Once the door was closed, Charlie asked, "Right, who is that guy?"

Sitting down next to Joe, Donna replied, "Sean McCarthy. Mallory was engaged to be married to him a couple of years ago. That's all I know."

"I don't know anymore," Zoe continued, "All I can remember was her telling me that she had left him the day of their wedding. Josh, do you know more?"

Josh bit his lip and made no reply; he knew that Mallory did not want the others to know for a good reason and he was not going to be the one who broke her trust.

For a while, Mallory and Sean walked in silence, then Sean asked, "Why did you leave me, on the day of our wedding? Wait, who knows about that?"

"Well, obviously my parents and Josh and my late cousin, Kate. I just told the others that I broke off the engagement, not that I-you know-left you standing at the altar." She sighed. "Why did I do it? I loved you more than anything, but I left you because I wasn't ready to be your wife. I knew what my life was going to be and I didn't want that yet."

"What do you mean?"

"My life would've been to keep working, but having about four kids, which isn't what I wanted and I still don't want that."

Staring at her for ages, as they stopped walking, her ex-fiancée asked, "Mallory, why didn't you tell me? We could've post-poned it until you were ready and I wouldn't have made you have kids unless you wanted to have them! You know that, right?"

Mallory said nothing for a while, then she nodded and murmured, "I know." She paused, then asked, "So, why did you come here?"

"I came here to see you. You don't have a boyfriend, do you?" Sean sounded very worried when he asked and that made her smile.

Shaking her head, she replied, "No. I mean, I was seeing someone, but not anymore. Do-do you still love me?"

Sean nodded. "I never stopped, Mallory. You are the love of my life." He said the last part in a quiet voice, as he came closer to her.

Mallory moved away and stated, in a clear voice, "Wait, I need to have time to think about this. You're not seeing anyone?" She was trying to work out if she still had feelings for him; she had spent so long denying her feelings for him after she had left him that she was not sure what were her true feelings anymore.

"I had a girlfriend for a couple of months, but it was nothing serious." Their eyes met and neither of them said anything for a while, until Mallory repeated, "I need to think about this." Although, in her heart, she knew that her feelings for him had returned.

An hour later, Mallory returned to her flat and she glad that only Josh, Donna, Zoe and Joe were there, as she did not want to risk upsetting CJ, after everything that had happened between her and Ben.

"Guys, I have to talk to you." She told them and they all sat down. "Now, Josh already knows this, but I'm going to tell you anyway. Sean and I were engaged to be married-well, I'm guessing you know that much anyway. Well, on the day of our wedding, I left the church and didn't go back. I walked out on the wedding."

Staring at her friend, Donna asked, "Why, didn't you love him?"

Mallory shook her head. "No, I-I did love him, I just wasn't ready for the pressures of marriage. You see, his parents died when he was very young and since then, he's always wanted to have kids and I wasn't ready for that. I know it's stupid, but it was what I did. And now, he's here and he still has feelings for me and I still do for him, so I'm thinking that I should give our relationship another shot. What would be the harm in that?"

Josh looked at her as if she were mad. "Mal, you left this man because of what he expected from you when you married. Now, a year from now, when he proposes to you, what are you going to do then? Leave him again?"

Rubbing her temple with her hands, she replied, "Yes, but I'm different now. I'm at a point in my life when I'm wanting to have kids. I mean, I'm 29 now, nearly 30. I have to think about what I want and my future and I'm ready for that this time."

"But, Mal"-

"If Amy asked you out, would you say no?"

Annoyed that Mallory had brought up Amy, Josh snapped, "No, but I didn't promise Amy I'd marry her and then not show up on the day of the wedding! I hadn't agreed to spend the rest of my life with her, like you did with Sean!"

Mallory sat down opposite her friends and asked, "After everything I did, do you think he'll really take me back?"

"He says he will"-Zoe began.

"But that's just it! What if he doesn't mean it, what if he just wants to frustrate me because of what I did to him?" Not wanting to hear Josh's opinion, she asked Joe what he thought.

Joe bit his lip. "Well, if I had been in Sean's situation- and I'm sure Josh will back me up on this-I would be very angry about your leaving me at the altar. I know that it was years ago, but the guy was prepared to commit to you and…-well, for a guy, that's the biggest blow to his pride; the woman whom he loves declaring that she doesn't feel the same way about him. You have to understand that. But, if he came all the way here, he must still love you, so I think you should take a chance and see what happens."

"No!" his girlfriend and Josh protested and the former continued, "Mallory, you left him for a reason. Why would want to open yourself up to that heartache again?"

"I don't care what any of you say, even you Josh," stated Mallory, "I know my feelings and I'm going to do what I think is the right thing to do for me and Sean." She stood up and walked to the door, but Josh grabbed her arm and looked into her eyes.

"Mal, please, think about why you're doing this!"

Pulling her arm out of his grip, she hissed back, "I'm doing this because I think that he might be the person with whom I'm meant to spend the rest of my life. He's my first love and they're forever-you should know that better than anyone, Josh!" In a lower voice, she added, "And I'm not doing this because my real first true love died and I know that's what you're thinking. You're wrong and Joanie would have wanted me to be happy."

In a quiet, broken voice, Josh whispered, "Don't bring Joanie into this."

Guilt filling her entire body, Mallory gave him an apologetic look, then left the flat, leaving the others wondering why she was doing what she was doing.

Mallory texted Sean and told him to meet her at the restaurant at the end of the streat. As soon as she saw him there, she ran up to him and kissed him passionately and told him that she was willing to give their relationship another chance, if he wanted to do so. Sean replied that he did and they kissed again.

That evening, Sam, CJ and Charlie returned to Donna and Mallory's flat and were very surprised not to find Mallory there.

"Where's Mallory?" inquired Sam, as the seven of the sat down for dinner, as Nicolas and Peter had already eaten and were watching TV.

Serving the food, his sister answered, "Well, I'm guessing that she's with Sean."

At the mention of that name, Sam chocked on his drink and glanced at Josh. "Sean, why does that name sound familiar?"

Zoe rolled her eyes at Sam's made memory. "Sean, Sean McCarthy, the man Mallory was engaged to be married to years ago."

"What? Why-why is she seeing him again?" Sam demanded. Luckily for him, all of his friends knew of his feelings for Mallory, or they would have been very confused.

Shrugging, CJ suggested, "Well, if she still has feelings for him, you can't blame her for trying to rekindle a spark. You never know what could come of diving into the past." At the latter part, she threw Josh a look.

"From my experience, the only thing it will end in is heartache!" Sam remarked, bitterly.

Sighing, Charlie commented, "Yes, but Sam not everyone's first love is like Lisa. Speaking of which, when are you next going to see Demi and the boys?"

"I'm seeing them on Monday, after work. It's always a little awkward, you know. I mean, they're my kids as much as they're Lisa, but of course, she's closer to them, seen as they live with her and not me. They're my children, I love them so much, but Lisa and I can't make our relationship work. I bet she'll get back together with Bradley soon and then Demi, Nathan and Devon will be more his than mine. Now I understand how Amy must feel when she sees Naomi."

There was a deadly silence and Donna threw her brother a glare, before Josh sighed. "Sam, it's not the same at all. Amy said that she wanted no part in Naomi's life after we graduated from university."

"And you let her? You let her just leave your daughter's life?"

Glaring at his friend, Josh snapped, "I didn't have a choice, Sam! It was Amy's decision. Of course I hated it, but it was the way Amy wanted it!"

Before anyone could say anything, the door was flung open and Leo stormed in, clearly in a very bad mood. "Josh, can I talk to you?" he asked, in a tight voice.

Josh nodded and walked over to him. "What's up?"

"I just saw Mal with Sean McCarthy! Josh, I thought you agreed to keep her away from that man? You know how much he hurt her."

"Leo, I tried but Mal has a mind of her own and she still has feelings for him."

Leo threw his head back in frustration and hissed, "Josh, it's your job to protect her when I and her mother can't! She'd do the same for you! Did she tell you why she left him?"

"Of course she did, Leo, but if she wants to be with then I can't stop that and neither can you. As long as she's happy, isn't that what matters?"

Shaking his head in disbelief, Leo stated. "After what happened to Joanie, I would have thought that you'd be protective of Mal, because of what she meant to Joanie. I guess I was wrong, Joshua."

With that, he turned and left the flat.

Besides Donna, all of the others were sitting in silence, wondering who Joanie was.

Josh sighed and pulled out his mobile phone and called Mallory. "Hey, Mal. Where are you? Leo just came to find me…. OK, I'll see you later. Bye."

He hung up and trying to sound casual, Sam asked, "So, where is she?"

"She's with Sean at a hotel. I think she's spending the night there." replied Josh, as he sat back down at the table.

Feeling as if he was about to be sick, Sam asked, "She's spending the night with him? Is she nuts? She's only been back with him for, what, a couple of hours? What is wrong with her?"

"Sam, you need to stop!" Donna snapped. "I'm sorry, Sam, but you need to let it go." She looked at her watch and turned to her boyfriend. "Joe, don't you need to get the boys to bed?"

Joe nodded. "Yes, I do. Thanks, Donna."

He kissed Donna goodbye, then he took his sons home.

Watching her friend closely, CJ remarked, "You and Joe are very close, aren't you? I can see the way the two of you look at each other. Do you love him?"

"Yes, I do." replied Donna, without any hesitation, as she was very sure about her feelings for Joe and about his feelings for her. "He's a great man and the boys are starting to like him, which makes things so much easier. They are such lovely boys!"

CJ smiled. "I'm glad you're happy, Donna. He seems like a nice man."

Smiling, Donna whispered, "Yes, he's a great man. I love him so much."

The two women sat down on the sofa, with their friends, who were watching the football. Charlie and Zoe stood up and took their leave, as they wanted to spend the evening together as a married couple, which is what they were.

Donna curled up next to her brother, who was in a very bad mood, "I'm sorry I snapped, Sam, I just think you need to get over it. You didn't make a move and you have to live with that."

Turning to Josh, Sam asked, "Do you agree with Donna?"

"Yes, as I said before, you didn't make a move, but another guy did and you just have to accept that, even if you don't want to. And Mal obviously doesn't feel the same way about you, so you need to stop chasing a dream, Sam."

Sam turned back to the TV, then asked, "Josh, this Joanie whom Leo mentioned, was she close to Mallory?"

Biting his lip, Josh nodded. "Yeah, she was. They were good friends."

"How do you know this Joanie?" inquired CJ. "Was she a friend of Rebekah's? If I asked Naomi who this Joanie is, would she know?"

Glaring at her, Josh snapped, "Sam, CJ, can we drop it, please? It isn't important!"

"Leo said"-

"Sam, leave it!" Donna hissed, aware that Josh had not told anyone but her, and she suspected Amy, about Joanie and she could tell that thinking about her was upsetting him.

Josh ran his hands through his hair and muttered, "I'm going home, to go to bed. I'll see you tomorrow." He stood up, grabbed his coat and left the flat.

On Tuesday morning, when Donna went into work early, the only other person in the staff room was Mallory, who was sitting in a chair, sipping a cup of coffee.

"Hey, Mallory. How was your weekend?" Donna asked, as she made herself a cup of coffee and sat with her friend.

Mallory smiled and replied, "It was good. It was the best weekend I've had in weeks. He's so sweet. How was your weekend?"

"Good, thanks. I went out with Joe last night, which was lovely." Donna observed Mallory and asked, "Mallory, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, honestly."

"Mallory, you can tell me." Donna looked into her eyes and Mallory knew that she could trust her.

Rubbing her hands over the cup of coffee, she sighed. "I guess, I never expected him to come and find me. I still love him, but I thought I'd never see him again and then he turned up, and all of those feelings came flooding back, so quickly. I guess I want our relationship to be what it was before I walked out and I can't have that." She hesitated, then asked, "I have to tell Sean that, don't I?"

Donna nodded. "I think you do. I'm so sorry, Mallory."

"If it had been your ex-fiancée who had turned up, what would you have done?"

Donna had never told anyone-not even Sam or Josh-about her relationship with her ex-fiancée, whom she preferred not to think about. "I would've run away, as far away as I could get from him," she replied, deciding to be honest, "but our relationship was very different from your relationship with Sean." She paused, then asked, "Does Joanie have anything to do with this?"

Looking down at her cup and hands, Mallory sighed. "What Joanie and I had was magical, Donna. We were in love. Josh was the only one we told, but I'm sure that Kate and Becky knew. We were in love and she died. I had to pretend that I was upset because I'd lost my friend, but I'd lost so much more than that: I'd lost the person with whom I'd wanted to spend the rest of my life. She had been 16 and I'd been 20, but that didn't matter. And then, she was gone. I just wish that I could re-live our relationship, from the first time we met, to our first kiss, to the last time we saw each other, the day before she died. When I met Sean and we starting dating, I felt guilty, as if I was cheating on Joanie. I also feel guilty for blaming Josh for her death for so long. It wasn't his fault, he was a little boy and doing what his big sister told him to do. Now, she and Kate are gone and he blames himself for that too. Joanie would have been so proud of him, I know it."

11 years earlier…

It was Joanie's 15th birthday, Josh's 11th in a couple of days and Mallory's 19th. Rebekah had turned 19 a couple of months before hand, as Kate had turned 12. The four of them were playing and talking in the garden.

When Josh, Kate and Rebekah went into the house to get drinks, Joanie and Mallory stayed outside and Joanie asked Mallory about university.

"It's great, thanks. I've made a friend named Sean McCarthy. I think he has a crush on me, so does Josh's roommate, Sam Seaborn. He's cute, but…."

"But, what? Ask on of them out!"

Shaking her head, Mallory replied, "No. I mean, I can see how they're attractive, but I already fancy someone."

Laughing, Joanie asked, "Do tell: who's the lucky boy?"

"Girl," her friend corrected, looking at her pointedly. "Joanie, I'm bisexual. I haven't told anyone, so you're the first. Please, Joanie, say something." The truth was that she had had romantic feelings for Joanie for years, but she knew that she didn't feel the same way.

Joanie sat there in silence for a while, then moved closer to Mallory on the rug. "Do you remember, yesterday, when you were singing that song? What was it 'The Scientist' by Coldplay? Watching that, watching you sing, made me realise something: you move me, Mal, and I'd be an idiot if I didn't take this chance with you." She cupped Mallory's face and kissed her, very firmly, on the mouth. It took Mallory a while to register what was going on, but once she did, she put her hand on Joanie's check and kissed her back.

When their lips parted, Joanie sat down on the mat and looked at Mallory. They both laughed awkwardly, then Mallory mumbled, "I can't believe we just did that. We are so dead."

"My parents won't mind and I'm sure your parents won't either." Despite being four years her junior, Joanie was far more reflective than Mallory.

Before the kissed again, Mallory asked, "Wait, next year, aren't you applying for NYADA? You'll get in, Joanie, and you'll leave here, won't you?"

Looking into her eyes, Joanie replied, "Mallory, for a year, I'm not going anywhere. What about you, do you have any plans?"

"No."

"Then we're fine." Joanie smiled and they kissed again.

A year later…

The school year was over and Joanie had been accepted at NYADA. She had turned 16 a day ago and Mallory was now 20; it was Josh's 12th birthday in a couple of days. Joanie and Mallory had dated in secret for the past year and, at Joanie's auditions, no-one had been more supportive than Mallory, besides Josh, but he had always been his sister's biggest fan.

That evening, Josh was at a sleep-over, Rebekah was on a date, so Joanie and Mallory had been left in the house alone by their parents, as the four of them had gone out for a meal. It was not the first time that the two girls had been alone since they had started dating, but this time, they also knew that they loved each other.

They were sitting alone in the kitchen and Mallory asked, "You will come and visit, won't you?"

"Of course, Mal, and you'll be coming to New York every weekend as far as I'm concerned."

Mallory looked down at her hands. "I just feel as if you're going to forget about me. I mean, you're going to be in a big city, with loads of new people, you're not going to want to come home to your girlfriend, whose still living with her dad."

"That's enough, Mallory!" snapped Joanie, as tears entered her eyes. "Mal, you are the love of my life and I'm never going to forget you, ok? I love you."

Tears of happiness formed in Mallory's eyes and she whispered, "I love you, too, Joanie."

They hugged, then Joanie brushed back Mallory's hair from her face and smiled. "I swear, for as long as I live, I'll never forget you. You're special and I know that because I'm going to give you something no-one else is ever going to get." She kissed Mallory and it was reciprocated, but then Mallory pulled away and asked. "Joanie, are you sure? I mean, you're 16, I'm 20 and you're going away soon and I've never done it before."

"You are the person I want to remember for the rest of my life, Mallory."

They kissed and then whispered that they loved each other to the other, holding each other close.

Present day…

Mallory pulled herself out of her memory, which she had fell into after going to Sean and telling him that they were over.

With tears in her eyes, she ran to Josh's flat and found him there. She fell into his arms and cried. He guessed why and asked no questions; his sister had told him about her relationship with Mallory and he had been happy for them, but when she had died, he had felt guilty.

He felt as if he had destroyed Joanie and Mallory's chance of happiness with each other and that was something which, no matter how close he was to Mallory, he could never replace.


	15. Chapter 14: Back to the start

Chapter 14: Take me back to the start…

A weak later, Ruth and Noah in Washington for the weak, which enabled Josh to go to work for a weak. Leo had asked to have him in for that weak, as it was a very busy weak, because of some of the votes.

As Leo ended the meeting in his office, Josh, Sam and a man named Louis went back to Josh's office to talk about what they were going to in terms of controlling the votes.

As soon as they were finished, Josh asked Louis, "Louis, you know Amy Ziegler, don't you?" He saw Sam look at him curiously.

Louis nodded. "Yes, she's a leader of one of the most powerful feminist group in the entire country. Do you know her?"

In the corner, Sam let out a laugh. Louis looked at him curiosly, so he cleared his throat and looked back down at the file in his hands.

Ignoring Sam, Josh replied, "Yeah, I've known her for a while actually. We dated at university and had a baby together. Anyway, I saw her a couple of weeks ago to do with the Bill about single parents."

"Hang on, I've seen your daughter. Now that I think about it, she does look so much like Amy. Wow." He cleared his throat and asked, "Sorry. What do you need?"

Josh smiled to himself, then replied, "Well, I want to see her again."

Sam sniggered and suggested, "Here's a radical idea: pick up the phone and ask her."

"No, because if she said 'no', I'd have to move far away from her because the embarrassment would be too much. I need to go and see her under the cover of work, it'll be easier that way."

Very confused, Louis remarked, "Well, you have to see her when your daughter sees her, right? So, why don't you do it, then?"

Josh shook his head. "No, that wouldn't work and also I couldn't do it with Naomi there. Come on, there has to be something which is annoying the feminists?"

"So far, they're happy."

"What about the stem-cell research? Some of them must have protested against that?"

Louis shook his head. "No, so far, they're being quite quiet."

Rolling his eyes, Josh remarked, "Typical. Where are all of the people who annoy you when you need them?"

"It's almost as if they don't know that you're trying to serenade your ex-girlfriend." Sam commented, in a sarcastic tone; he was glad that Josh was showing signs of moving on from Kate, but he wished that he would be more direct about it.

After reading his notes, Sam suggested, "What about the Paternity Leave Study? That has to annoy some of them?"

Smiling, Josh nodded. "Great, I'll go with that. Thanks, Sam."

Louis looked at his boss with slight amusement, then asked, "Hey, have you heard about McGarry's daughter? A reporter saw her going into a hotel with a man on Saturday. They spent Sunday and Monday in there, too, and now, this guy's left town. Guess who the guy was? Her ex-fiancée! I think you need to speak to the Senator, Josh, and to his daughter, to prevent this from becoming a story."

Josh sprang back into work mood and walked over to Leo's office, where he knocked on the door and asked if he could enter.

He entered and remembered that the last time he had been in the office, he had been with Kate. He felt a wave of sadness fall over him and remembered that he needed to take his anti-depressants when he went home and spent time with his daughters. He was so distracted with his own thoughts that he didn't notice Leo walk in.

As soon as Leo entered, he knew what was going through his Chief of Staff's mind and he deeply regretted the pain it was putting him through; he knew that had Kate not died, she and Josh would have been married by now and that broke his heart and he knew how much they had loved each other.

"Josh, Josh? Are you alright?" Leo asked, genuinely concerned for the young man.

Shaking his head, Josh replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks. Louis said that a reporter saw Mal go into a hotel room with Sean on Saturday. They've also worked out who he is, probably that he's a dentist and that he and Mal were engaged. From a P.R prospective, this could go very badly. What do you want me to do?"

Leo exhaled deeply and asked, in an angry tone, "Tell me, was this reporter stalking my daughter, or did they just happen to be where Mal and Sean went? For God's sake!" He threw his head back into the air and asked, "If it were someone following Naomi or Catherine, how would you feel?"

For a while, there was a silence in the room, as Leo tried to calm himself down and thought about how the handle this in a professional manner. He also felt guilty for shouting at Josh, as none of this was his fault and he knew that Josh loved Mallory like a sister and he would do anything to protect her.

Breathing in deeply, Leo sat down in his chair and Josh sat down opposite him. "I want you to go and talk to this reporter. Find out who it was. And speak to Mal. I wish I could do it, but"-

"I know you're very busy." Josh finished, with a smile. "I don't mind, Leo, don't worry. I'll get this sorted."

Just before he left Leo's office, his mentor said, "Josh, at lunch, go home and spend some time with the girls. I have to say, Catherine's looking more like Kate every day."

Trying to deflect from the tears which had formed in his eyes at the mention of Kate, Josh asked, "Leo, have you heard from Josephine or any of Kate's brothers?"

Leo hesitated, a little unsure of how to answer Josh's question; he knew that his elder sister and nephews wanted nothing to do with Catherine-Françoise, but he did not know if Josh realised that. "I haven't heard from them in a while." He replied.

"That's strange, because Elizabeth's been to see Catherine and so has her son, Seamus." He paused, then asked, "Leo, does Josephine not want to see Catherine because of-of how Kate died?"

Biting his lip, Leo nodded. "Catherine reminds her of Kate and that hurts her and her sons too much." That wasn't the whole truth, but he knew that that was more than Josh could bear let alone anything else.

Josh stood in silence for a while, then whispered, "Well, the fact that Catherine looks like Kate does upset me and I'm her dad, but I'm sure that, in time, it will serve as a great comfort." Tears formed in his eyes again and he admitted, "I really do worry about her-and Naomi-growing up without a mother."

"Well, I hear Amy's back in town, so you never know. She would be a great mothers to the girls!"

Josh nodded and walked over to the door.

Back in his office, he called the number of a journalist whom he trusted and who had knew would help him. This journalist was also, unforchantley, an ex-boyfriend of CJ's.

An hour later, after calling his parents to check on Naomi and Catherine, Josh arrived in a café, where he had arranged to meet with Danny Cancannon. He sat at a table, ordered a cup of coffee and waited for Danny to arrive.

"Hey, Josh." He looked up and saw his old friend. Danny ordered a coffee for himself and sat down opposite Josh.

Once their coffee came, Josh asked, "So, how are you?" he wanted to make this clear that this was not official business and Danny worked that out.

"I'm fine, thanks. I have a girlfriend and she's lovely and very smart." His smile fell. "I would ask you how you are, but I can see how tired you are and I saw the news. I was so sorry to hear about Kate, Josh. The two of you made a great couple. I've forgotten, what's the baby's name?"

Not really wanting to talk about his dead fiancée, Josh replied shortly, "Catherine-Françoise."

Danny frowned, as that name sounded very familiar to him, then he remembered where he had heard that name before and he kicked himself mentally; Kate's death had been all over the news and so had the name of the baby. He dreaded to think of how Josh had coped with all of that. "Wasn't that Kate's full name?"

"Yeah, it was. It fitted, you know, naming her after her mother." Josh answered in an even voice, which Danny knew was forced.

"How is the baby, then?" he asked.

"She's fine, thanks. She's doing really well, considering.." Josh trailed off, remembering the feeling in his stomach when he had thought that there was a chance that Catherine-Françoise may not survive.

"And what's your other daughter called, what's her name? The one you and Amy had together?" Danny had been at Yale, in the same class as Josh and Amy and had watched their relationship all the way through when they had graduated. He had been devastated for their daughter when they had failed to rekindle their relationship and moved to different sides of the country. It hadn't been that he thought that Josh wouldn't love his daughter, but it was the fact that Josh and Amy had been such a good couple and all of that had been thrown away and Danny did not know why.

"Naomi Lyman and she's eight-years-old now." Josh smiled at the thought of his eldest daughter, then remarked, "Danny, the reason I called you here, it concerns Mallory. Mallory O'Brien, Leo's daughter."

Danny nodded. "Yeah, I know who you mean. Kate's cousin. Are the two of you close?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah, we played together as kids. The thing is a reporter saw her with her ex-fiancée, going into a hotel and they have the details on Mal's ex-fiancée. Can you help us?"

"God, this would be awful for Mallory, and for Leo." Danny muttered. "OK, is Mallory back together with this guy?"

Biting his lip, Josh answered, "Well, when she spent the Bank Holiday with him, they were back together, but Mal broke up with him the following Tuesday and that's where it gets bad."

"Yes. Not only was the daughter of a Senator alone with a man, it was her ex-fiancée, and they're no longer together." Danny sat in thought for a while, he continued, "Tell Mallory to prepare a statement, explaining her relationship with her ex-fiancée. I'll go and talk to some people and I'll call you in an hour. I'll see you later. I'm glad Naomi and Catherine-Françoise are alright, Josh." He added, with a smile, then stood up and left the café.

After calling Leo and giving him an update, Josh agreed to go to talk to Mallory, as Leo was busy with meetings and there was no way that Sam would want to have a conversation with Mallory regarding her ex-fiancée. He then called Donna and asked if Mallory was there, as it was their lunch break. She was, so he made his way there.

He walked into their flat and saw that the two women were sitting at the table, working and eating. After nicking some food from Donna, he asked Mallory if he could talk to her for a minuete in private. Donna lifted her work and food and took it into her bedroom, so that Josh and Mallory could have privacy.

Mallory continued to eat and Josh sat down next to her. "Mal, a reporter saw you and Sean go into a hotel on the Bank Holiday. Now, they know that he's left town now and they also know that he's your ex-fiancée. I've spoken to a reporter, who's a friend and to your dad, and they agree that you should prepare a statement, regarding your relationship with Sean, for when we're attacked with it, which we will be, believe me."

Shaking her head, Mallory replied, "No, I'm not doing that."

"Mal, listen"-

"No, I won't listen, Josh! My relationship or past relationship with anyone-including Sean-is not the business of the public or the press. Whomever I date is none of their concern and I don't care if you think it's a good idea."

Josh sighed and stood up. He ran one of his hands through his hair. "Mal, your dad will get attacked with this and you know it. The daughter of a Senator spending a couple of night with her ex-fiancée is not going to look good against some of the bills he's trying to pass. You have to prepare a statement. I'll help you and so will Sam. You have to make it clear that you and Sean were in a relationship when you went to his hotel."

"You don't think your relationship with Kate made my dad look bad?" Mallory snapped, as she, too, stood up. "You don't think that the Deputy NCS Advisor to the President in a relationship with a Senator's Chief of Staff looked bad? It looked terrible, Josh, and you knew that and so did Kate! But neither of you would have made a statement about your relationship, because it wasn't anyone's business. After Kate died, Dad was devastated, but he had to hide it from people and you were too busy to notice! Did you even love Kate, at all, or was it all just a show?"

Josh stared at her speechless. In a chocked voice, "Do you really think that I didn't love Kate? I never would've asked her to marry me if hadn't. I had feelings for her since I was 12, you know that. After everything Kate had been through, she deserved happiness and she didn't get it. Her baby was born and she died. Where's the fair in that? She will never see her daughter grow up!" Tears were falling down his face and Donna came out of her bedroom.

Mallory embraced her surrogate brother into a tight hug and whispered, "I'm so sorry, Josh." She knew that after everything Josh had been through in his life, losing Kate had hit him harder than it would have hit someone else and she was aware that he had been bottling it up for the past four months since her cousin's death. Ironically, very like Kate.

Two years earlier-Mr. Harper's funeral, Boston…

Leo and Mallory knew that the funeral was going to be hard for them, but they also knew that it was going to be harder for Josephine, Lucas, Michael, Joseph and Kate. The man whom they were burying today was their husband and dad. Will was there, too, as Kate's husband, but Kate kept avoiding him and Mallory couldn't work out why-he was her husband, after all, so why was she moving away every time he so much as touched her? She was probably very sensitive, but both Leo and Mallory guessed that there was more to it than that.

The funeral itself was a traditional Catholic one, as Josephine attended Church, as her husband had until the day of his death. He had been in the Navy and, especially for his daughter who was in CIA, it was hard to think that her dad had survived many attacks on the sea, and yet it had been a drunk driver who had taken him from them.

At the wake, Kate managed to avoid all of her family and she made her way up to her bedroom, where she felt safe. There, she looked at the photograph which had been taken a couple of hours after her birth; it was of her mum, dad and Uncle Leo with her and her brothers were there too. As the family they had once been.

There was a knock on the door and Josh came in. Kate was shocked, as she had not seen him since Joanie's funeral, which had been when they had been 12, 11 years ago.

"Hey," her friend sat down beside her, but also gave her space as he sensed that she needed it. "I came to see how you were, but I guess it's a pretty dumb question."

"Yes, it is." Kate laughed, for the first time since her dad had died, which was about a weak ago. She smiled at him, then asked, "Where's Naomi?" Naomi was Josh's 6-year-old daughter. Kate had never met her, but Leo loved her to bits, as did Mallory.

Josh watched his friend closely, then replied, "She's staying with Donna?"

"Donna?" Kate cocked her head, as she had not heard that name before.

"Donna Moss, the sister of my roommate. She's a great friend and she loves Naomi." His smile fell and he asked, "So, how are you holding up? Really, Kate?"

Inhaling and exhaling, Kate murmured, "I don't know. I mean, in a weird way, I know that Dad's gone, but it just doesn't feel real yet. I've never lost anyone, besides Joanie." She bit her lip and asked, "Josh, would you mind staying here with me tonight? I just don't want to be alone tonight and everyone's going to Aunt Liz's house, but I don't want to go there."

"Of course I'll stay with you." Josh replied, smiling and he took hold of her hand and squeezed it. He had had feelings for Kate when he had been 12 and seeing her again, all of those feelings came flooding back.

An hour later, Kate had only had 2 bottles of wine, but that enough to make her tipsy. Josh hadn't drunk since he had been 19, as he did not want to risk becoming abdicated again, so he just sat there, watching her.

As Kate sat back down on the bed, she laughed to herself as a funny thought entered her head and she acted on it: she kissed Josh on the lips and he kissed her back. However, he pulled her away and held her at arm's length. "Kate, you're drunk and you're grieving your dad. This isn't right and I cannot take advantage of you like this."

"You're not; I've always had feelings for you and I really want to do this with you. I love you, Josh." Kate insisted and it was true. Whilst she was drunk, all the alcohol was doing was liberating repressed feelings.

Continuing to hold her at arm's length, Josh said, "Kate, no. I mean, I have feelings for, but-well, you're married."

Kate shook her head. "Legally, yes, but Will and I have been legally separated for the past three years." Tears fell down her face and she kissed him again. "Please, Josh. I want this more than anything. I want to be your girlfriend."

Josh shook his head. "No, Kate."

Just then, the alcohol caused Kate to fall asleep on Josh's lap. Slowly, Josh removed himself from under her, and draped a blanket over her and made sure that she was in a safe position. He then made himself comfortable, but checked on her every half hour.

The next morning, Kate remembered nothing. She returned to the CIA H.Q and Josh to Washington.

Present day…

After finishing her lunch, Mallory fished out her mobile phone and called Leo. She told her dad that she was not going to make a statement and later Danny called Josh to tell him that he had managed to persuade the reporter who had seen Mallory and Sean not to run the story.

Just as Josh was about to go back to work, the telephone rang and Donna answered it. "Hi, Amy. Yeah, he's here. You tracked him down. Hold on a sec." Grinning from ear to ear, she passed the telephone to Josh, grabbed her coat and left her flat.

"Hi, Amy."

"Hi, J." she smiled at the sound of his voice. "How are you?"

Sitting down on the coffee table, her ex-boyfriend answered, "I'm fine, thanks. Are you-are you running?"

"Yes; it's a natural way to stay fit. You should try it sometime, J."

Josh smiled, then stated, "We need to talk about something: paternity leave. I was hoping that we could meet in person to talk about this."

Amy stopped running. "Sure. Can you have a late drink? I have a date, but I should be done by 11."

"You have a date?" Josh asked, hoping that he sounded casual about that.

"Does 11 work for you? Wait, what about the girls?"

"My parents are in town; they can take care of them. You have a date?"

There was silence, then Amy replied, "Yeah, I do. We're going to the ballet. So, I'll see you at Carson's at 11?"

Smiling, Josh nodded. "That'll be great. I'll see you later. Bye." He hung up the phone and placed it back in its holder.

Before 11 that evening, Josh left Naomi and Catherine-Françoise with his mum and dad and made his way to Carson's.

He saw Amy and walked over to the table. "Hi." He smiled, as he sat down opposite her. "How was the ballet?"

"It was wonderful, thank you."

As he looked at the menu, Josh asked, "Which ballet was it?"

Amy chuckled and asked, "Which ballets do you know?"

Smiling, Josh replied, "Well, I have an eight year old daughter, who loves Disney films, so I do know that Swan Lake is one, right?"

"Yes, I bought her that DVD. If it weren't for me, your mum and Donna you would've had our daughter growing up watching _Power Ranges_."

A waitress came over and asked for their orders. Amy asked for a glass of red wine and Josh asked for a glass of water. As soon as the waitress was gone, Amy asked, "Is my drinking alcohol in front of you going to be alright? It won't cause you to have a replace, will it?"

Josh shook his head. "No. My friends drink all of the time and it doesn't bother me. Well, it does, but I'm stronger now."

Amy looked relieved, then asked, "So, paternity leave. What did you want to talk about?"

"Well, we're going to conduct a study, but as far as maternity leave goes, we're leaving that."

"I know." Amy nodded.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Josh asked, "Who was your date? The guy with whom you went to the ballet?"

Brushing her fringed back from her eyes, Amy replied, "I guy I've been seeing."

"And he likes the ballet?" Josh asked, in a mocking tone.

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Amy retorted, "No. No, he likes me and I like the ballet, which, by the way, you hated when we dated. You always refused to go to the ballet."

Just then, their drinks came and Amy started drinking, then she asked again, "What do you want?"

Sipping his own drink, Josh replied, "Well, I just came to tell you what I've just told you. I assume that, as the leader of a feminist group, you'd be angry and argue with me."

Staring and observing her ex-boyfriend, Amy asked, "Okay, J, what the Hell is going on?" Before he could answer, she asked, "Have you come here, with some lame excuse, in order to see me? Is it possible that you have not grown up since we were together?" When Josh made no reply, she shook her head. "I don't believe you, J."

"So, you're telling me there isn't a reason you're here?" Josh snapped.

"I'm here, because I thought that there was a problem. With work or with the girls. I'm happy to help."

Josh sighed. "Why are you here, then? I'm here, you're here, and your date is sitting at home watching the ballet."

"By all means, J, mock my boyfriend, even though you've never met him."

Hearing the word 'boyfriend' coming out of Amy's mouth stabbed Josh and he repeated, "Your boyfriend. Right."

Rolling her eyes, Amy asked, "Why didn't you just pick up and phone and ask me out, or ask me when you drop off Naomi. I'll tell you why"-

"Do you need me in this conversation, or are you fine by yourself?"

"-I'll tell you why, because this is what you like: this. This is what you like."

"That's really not true, Amy."

Amy shook her head. "Don't lie. We're not at Yale anymore and I get paid a lot of money to do what I do and I don't put up with waiting for guys like you to make a move."

Looking down at his glass of water and then looking up at Amy, Josh asked, "What is it about, guys like me, then? Enlighten me."

Looking at him seriously, Amy replied, "You like to be in control and you can control this more than you can control a relationship or another person. I know you. If this lasted longer than you wanted it to, you would run away. I know you, Josh. I know you too well."

"That's not true." Josh returned in a whisper. Their eyes met again and they sat there, searching the eyes of the other, as they had done when they had been trying to work out each other's feeling all of those years ago, when they had been 18.

Josh's mobile phone ringing pulled the two of them back into reality. Josh murmured 'excuse me' and answered his mobile. It was Leo. He listened for a while, then said that he would be there as soon as possible.

Biting his lip, he looked back up at Amy, who forced a smile. "I'm sorry, I have to go. I'm sorry." With that, he stood up and left, leaving Amy feeling abandoned and as if she was about to burst into tears.

Ten minutes later, Josh walked into the building and made his way to Leo's office. On the way, he walked into Sam, who had been called in for the same reason. His friend looked very annoyed. When he asked Sam what was wrong, Sam mumbled that he had been with his babies. Josh could understand why he was in such a bad mood.

They walked into Leo's office and he told them that two soldiers from Washington had been captured and killed by an enemy power and that the bodies of the soldiers were going to be flown back to the United States the next morning. He asked Josh if he would go with him to talk to the families, which Josh did and they went to the car.

2 hours later-1:00AM…

There was now little light left in the sky when Josh and Leo retuned to Leo's office. Josh drove Leo home, so that he was safe and then decided go and sleep at Donna and Mallory's, as it was closer to where he was now and he was shattered.

As he walked over to their flat, he saw a figure sitting on the steps outside there flat. It was Amy. She smiled and said, "You owe me for the drinks."

Sitting down next to her, Josh nodded. "I'm sorry that I had to leave you earlier. I can't tell you why, just that I'm very sorry."

"After we broke up," Amy began, "whenever I had a date, you took food and stayed in your room for hours, with Naomi. Why?"

Josh shrugged. "I guess the idea of you with someone else didn't fill me with joy, after everything we'd been through."

Amy looked down at her hands, then remarked, "You know, I broke up with you because of the drugs, not because-because I didn't love you, because I did. Have you dated anyone since?"

"Just Kate."

Smiling, Amy laughed, "I bet she was the one to initiate the first kiss, wasn't she, like with us?"

Josh nodded. "Yes. I'm hopeless-I've always have been hopeless on acting on my feelings. I guess it's because of the fear of rejection. You and I made it obvious that we liked each other, so when you kissed me, it wasn't a great shock, but had we been platonic friends, who had then developed feelings, I think that's harder."

"You know what," Amy whispered, as she searched his face, "you never have been a talker, J." After a moment of silence and regarding each other, she smiled to herself. She moved her face closer to his and, acting on instinct, Josh did the same. Their lips met and Amy kissed him first and he kissed her back.

After one kiss, Amy moved away, her face serious. Her eyes searched Josh's and his searched hers and she saw what she had seen the first time they had kissed: hope, warmth and love and Josh saw the same thing in her eyes.

Forcing a smile, Amy looked down at her hands, as she was embarrassed and said, "Thanks for the drink, J." With that, she smiled again, stood up and walked away.

As she walked away, Josh watched her and he smiled to himself; she had initiated the kiss, which meant that she had feelings for him, so there was still hope for them, in his eyes.

As Amy drove away, she thought about what she had just done; as with their first kiss, she had not thought about it, she had acted on instinct. Obviously, her subconscious knew more about her feelings for Josh than she consciously did. She had followed her heart and kissed him and he had kissed her back. There was still something between them and Amy was determined that, if they became a couple, this time, their relationship would work.


	16. Chapter 15: Questioning what you know

**I do know own 'The West Wing' or any of the charecters. **

Chapter 15: Questioning what you know.

It had now been an entire weak since Josh and Amy had kissed outside of Donna and Mallory's flat, yet Amy was still dating Senator Park. Josh had told his friends what had happened and they had all been happy, apart from Sam, who had been jealous.

It was a Sunday, the day before a major meal at the Capitol Building and Josh was spending the day with Naomi and Catherine-Françoise, playing and, at his eldest daughter's insistence, watched 'Swan Lake.'

As they were about to start to watch the Disney film, Donna and Joe came in and Joe asked Josh if he could speak with Josh. Josh nodded, and they went over to the kitchen, whilst Donna sat down with the girls and started the film. Nicolas and Peter sat on the sofa and played on their Gameboy.

Josh and Joe sat down, then Joe began, "The thing is, I've been fired and I was wondering if Senator McGarry had any open posts on his staff. I can meet with him after the meal tomorrow night, if that would work for him."

Josh smiled at his friend's boyfriend's thoughtfulness. "I'll talk to him tomorrow and let you know. You don't mind if I take Donna with me to the dinner, do you?"

"No." Joe replied, then he added, "By the way, Amy Ziegler, Naomi's mum, she is seeing someone."

Nodding, Josh replied, "Yes, I know." After a pause, he asked, "Do you know who?"

"Yes. Senator Allan Perk, which I personally find very interesting as he was losing all of his support until he and Amy started dating and now he's very popular. Just something to keep in mind." He then walked over to the sofa and sat with his sons, leaving Josh with the information he had just been given. What if Amy's boyfriend was using her in order to gain political points?

Later that day, when Josh was at the park with Naomi and Catherine-Françoise, CJ found Sam at Donna and Mallory's and asked if she could speak to him.

They sat down and CJ began, "My paper's sending someone to the dinner tomorrow night and we would like you do be this person's...escort."

Feeling flattered by the suggestion, Sam nodded. "Great, I'll do it! Who's the reporter?"

CJ bit her lip. "Well, that's the thing. It's Lisa."

Sam sat there in silence for a while, before asking, "And there's no-one else who could do it? OK, I'll do it. Wait, who's going to look after the kids and Naomi and Catherine-Françoise?"

"That's what Mallory and I are doing." CJ smiled. She sighed. "I am sorry, Sam. I know that this is going to be difficult for you."

Shaking his head, Sam insisted, "No. It will be fine. If Josh could manage to work with Amy, then I can spend an evening with Lisa, my ex-wife, in an official capacity." Despite the tone, he was adopting he was dreading it and CJ could see that in his eyes and she felt guilty.

The room in which the party and meal was had been decorated beforehand.

As the party began, Donna went over to her brother, so that he was not dealing with his ex-wife alone, as she knew he would be if she was not there.

After going to the bar to buy some water, Josh walked over to Amy and said 'hello'. She smiled, then said, in a very clear voice, "I came here with my boyfriend, J. What do you want?"

Remembering what Joe had told him the day before, Josh pulled her into a corridor, saying that he had to talk to her about something.

As she sipped her wine, Amy asked, "What do you want?"

Trying to focus on the conversation and not the wine, Josh began, "You're dating Allen Park, whose a Senator for Georgia State. Well, I took the liberty of looking at his pooling dater"-

"Oh, aren't you kind!" Amy quipped, with sarcasm in both her voice and face.

"And one of the things I noticed was that we was very unpopular, especially with women's groups…until he started dating you, at which point his popularity went through the roof. When did the two of you start dating?"

"The same time you and Kate did!" Amy snapped. The hurt of her ex-boyfriend's face was evident, so she whispered, "I'm sorry, but he's a good guy and I like him a lot. Why are we having this conversation?"

Smiling at what was neither her naivety or stupidity, Josh remarked, "Don't you think the correlation of his becoming popular and the two of you dating is a bit of an odd coincidence, especially with the women's groups." He added, hoping that she would work it out so that he didn't have to say it out loud.

Amy looked him up and down, then back up at his face, before saying, in a dry voice, "So you think that he's using me in order to be popular. Wow! There's jealousy and then there's this, J!"

"I'm not jealous!" he protested. "Think about it: he dates you and becomes popular. He always does photo ops with you and publicise your relationship."

"When you work in the field we work in, that's what you do!" Amy retorted. "Can I just point out that Senator Perk is very good at what he does? That doesn't support your theory, now, does it? I have to say, I am flattered; my ex-boyfriend, from eight years ago, is coming up with crap because he's jealous!" Her tone was sarcastic and dry.

Frustrated with her, Josh snapped, "Right, well, who initiated the kiss, because it wasn't me. It was you, Amy!"

Her eyes met him and she glared at him, before saying, "Don't talk to me for the rest of the evening, Josh. I have to get back to my boyfriend." She walked off and walked back into the party. She found her boyfriend and they kissed, causing a surge of jealousy to run through Josh's body and cause him to ask himself: did she no longer have feelings for him, had she moved on when he hadn't? But he had moved on, with Kate, but now she was gone.

Charlie and Zoe were babysitting Naomi, Catherine-Françoise, Demi, Nathan and Devon with Mallory; they both loved kids and they loved Naomi and Catherine-Françoise. It also took for people to look after four children, even though three of them were babies. What became clear to Charlie was that Nathan and Devon, unlike the others, they were not accustomed to being held by a man, which made him feel very sorry for Sam.

As the night drew on, the three babies slept, but Naomi was determined to stay up with the adults for as long as possible.

"Uncle Charlie," Naomi asked her uncle, as she was sitting on her Aunt Zoe's knee, "are you and Auntie Zoe going to have kids?"

Zoe giggled and replied, "Yes, we are, sweatie, but we're going to leave it for a couple of years, so that we can focus on our relationship."

Naomi nodded, then mused, "Daddy and Mum were together for a year, before they had me, but they broke up, so their relationship obviously wasn't that good. And then Mum left, so she obviously didn't love either of us."

"That's not true," stated her uncle, pulled her onto his knee, "your mum does love you more than anything in this world. She just left because she thought that was the best thing to do. And she and your dad did love each other."

"But they don't now, right?"

Charlie and Zoe glanced at each other and at Mallory, wondering how to answer a question when they did not know the answer themselves; they wanted Josh and Amy to get back together and to be a family, with Naomi and Catherine-Françoise, but they knew that the chances of that happening were very limited.

Before anyone could answer Naomi's question, there was a knock on the door and Zoe walked over to the door and opened it. It was Abigail Ziegler, Amy's mum and Charlie's step mum. She looked a great deal like her daughter and granddaughter; she had green eyes and dark, curly hair.

Charlie saw her and hugged her and Zoe did the same. Naomi stood up and cried, "Grandma Abbey! It's so great to see you!" she ran over to her grandmother and hugged her. She was not as close to her mum's parents as her dad's parents, but that was because she didn't see them as often. "Where's Granda Jed?" she asked.

"He's working, sweatie, and I'm in Washington on business, so I thought I'd come to see you all. Where's Amy?"

Putting his arms around his wife, her stepson answered, "She's at a dinner and party in the Capitol Building. She's gone with her boyfriend, Senator Allan Perk."

Abbey's smile faltered slightly, but she recovered herself and stated, "Oh, yes; she mentioned him on the phone a couple of days ago." The three adults had seen the falter in her face when Amy's boyfriend had been mentioned and Charlie wanted to find out why she had had that reaction, but before he could ask her, Naomi asked, "Grandma Abbey, have you seen my sister, Catherine-Françoise?"

"No, I haven't." Naomi led her into the bedroom which she and her half-sister shared and she showed her grandmother the sleeping Catherine-Françoise. Abbey had heard what had happened to Kate on the news and her heart went out to Josh, whom she knew had already suffered in his young life, without losing Kate.

Naomi was send to bed and Charlie and his adopted mum went back to Charlie and Zoe's flat, whilst Mallory and Zoe stayed at Josh's, in order to watch over the children.

In his flat, Charlie and Abbey made themselves a cup of tea, then Charlie asked, "Mum, what's your problem with Amy's boyfriend? As his mother, Iris, had died when he had been a couple of months old, he had grown up with Abbey, she had adopted him as her own son and, therefore, he called her 'mum', as it seemed natural.

Swallowing her tea and shaking her head, Abbey replied, "I don't have a problem with him, I'm sure he's a very nice man, Charlie." When she saw her son giving her a look, she placed the cup down on the table. "I like the man and I'm glad that Amy's finally dating again, instead of always focusing on her career and what she lost. I just-she tells me things. Allan's a great guy and she's very fond of him, but they've been together for nearly a year, and, from what Amy said, Allan is prepared to make a commitment to her, but she isn't ready to make one to him."

"What do you mean by 'commitment'?"

"Allan's a couple of years older than Amy and I think that he'd quite like to settle down and start a family."

Charlie sighed. "And my sister doesn't want that?"

Abbey laughed and smiled sadly. "Don't get me wrong. If she and Josh had stayed together, they'd be married by now for sure and I think that's part of the problem. She may not know it herself, but I think she regrets breaking up Josh, especially now that she sees their daughter more and more. I think it's a reminder of what she could have had. They started dating when they were 18. They were together for over a year, and then Amy ended it and I don't know why. I do know that, after they knew Naomi was going to live, Amy hoped that Josh would ask her out again, but he never did. I guess he was too scared."

Sighing, Charlie ran his hands threw his hair, before whispering, "They kissed about a weak ago."

"They what?" Abbey asked, stunned and happy at the same time.

"Yeah, Josh told us. They were sitting together, taking and then Amy leaned across and kissed him and he kissed her back."

"Well, then why on Earth is she still with Allan, if she kissed Josh?"

Charlie shook his head. "I don't know, but I think that she needs to make up her mind-and quickly, before it's too late."

Back in the Capitol Building, Sam was giving his ex-wife a tour of the building. It had initially been a little awkward, but he focused on seeing a reporter and not his ex-wife whom he had loved and that made it easier, but he knew that that bubble could not last for the entire night.

As the two of them sat down in a corner of the room, away from other people, Lisa remarked, "Bradley and I are back together."

Stuffing his face with food, Sam muttered, "That's wonderful." His tone was dry, as he did not mean a single word of it; he hated Bradley for what he had done to his marriage with Lisa, what he had done to their family.

There was a long silence, then Lisa sighed. "Sam, it wasn't Bradley who broke up our marriage-I had my foot out of the door and then he came along and, well, it happened."

"Was it because of me? Was it because I worked too hard and didn't spend enough time with you?" Sam asked the question which he had wanted to ask since finding out that Lisa had had an affair. "Or was it because you didn't love me anymore?"

Lisa looked into his eyes, in order to communicate what she was saying to him. "Sam, I still did love you, but you and I weren't the same people as we were when we were 18. For ages, I convinced myself that we could grow up together and grow into our relationship, but that can't happen, Sam. I'm sorry." She kissed him on the check, then stood up and whispered, "I'm glad that you were my first love, Sam, but first loves never last forever." She squeezed his shoulder, then walked away.

Just as Sam was about to go to the bathroom, Josh sat next to him and asked, "Are you okay, buddy?"

Sam shook his head. "No. I feel as if I've just had my heart torn out and ripped apart by the hounds of Hell. It's just-it's just hard thinking that you weren't good enough for someone to love, you know what I mean?"

"Yes I do." Josh murmured, looking down at his hands. "Sam, you need to move on. Accept that you and Lisa are a thing of the past, but you do have three children as a result of it."

The two of them sat in silence for a while, then someone hit Josh on the head. It was Amy. "Come with me." She said, before walking off into the corridor. Josh stood up and followed her, wondering what she wanted.

As they walked through the corridor, she hissed something, which Josh didn't catch and he told her so.

When they stopped walking, Amy repeated, "I said: he, my boyfriend, happens to be more feminist than Senator McGarry. He has tried to pass all kinds of bills to do with preventing violence against women and around abortion clinics."

"And I didn't dispute that."

"You still think that he's using me?" Amy challenged, her eyes fixed on his.

Josh sighed. "I was saying that two hours ago. I haven't said anything about it since."

Much to his surprise, a wide smile appeared on Amy's face and she was about to say something, when Senator Allan Park walked over to them and shook Josh's hand, before turning to his girlfriend, "Amy, Senator McGarry and I are having some pictures done. Come and join me."

Resisting the urge to look at Josh, Amy asked, "You don't want to do them yourself?"

Allan shook his head and made his way back to the party.

Amy's eyes landed on Josh's and he smiled in a sarcastic way. "Go ahead. Photo opp. It's all about publicising a relationship, remember?"

She glared at him in a mocking way. As she walked away, she looked back at him and he looked straight at her. Their eyes met and they searched each other's faces.

"Amy!" Allan called.

Tearing her eyes away from Josh's, Amy gave him a small smile, then followed her boyfriend down the corridor.

"I saw that." Donna stated, as she walked over to her best friend, smiling. "Never give up hope."

Josh glared at her mockingly, then the two of them walked bac to the party.


	17. Chapter 16: Yesterday

Chapter 16: Yesterday.

A couple of weeks later, Amy was spending the evening at Allan's house, as it was their date night and they were watching 'Mamma Mia'.

At the end of the film, Allan turned to Amy and stated, "Amelia, there's something I have to talk to you about. I need to get through it and I need you to let me, which I know is going to be hard for you." He laughed and so did Amy, the latter of whom was very confused and wondering what was going on.

Taking hold of her hands, Allan began, "Amelia, this past year with you has been the best year of my life and I don't-I don't ever want to let you go. I love you, Amelia." He slid off the sofa and asked, "Amelia Ziegler, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

The shock Amy felt was unbelievable and for a while, she there, saying nothing. But she did know something; had it been Josh who had asked her, she would not have had to think about her answer, as it would have been instinctive.

A couple of hours later, in the early hours of the morning, Josh was woken up by banging on the door. It was Amy and he let her in, as she seemed very distressed.

"Hi," he smiled, "do you want some coffee?"

Amy shook her head and sat down on the sofa. "No thanks, J. I need to talk to you about something."

"Sure, what's up?" Josh asked, as he sat down next to her. He watched her closely and he could tell that there was something seriously wrong with the woman whom he had once loved more than anything.

Amy sighed. "I just wanted to tell you that Allan isn't using me and the fact that we're dating; he genuinely cares for me, you know. Admit that you're wrong and that our relationship has nothing to do with politics."

Shaking his head, her ex-boyfriend replied, "No, it has everything to do with politics-yes, he probably does have feelings for you, but he doesn't love you. What makes you think that he's an honest man, did you look into his eyes and see his soul?"

"He didn't have to tell me," Amy began, in a slow, paced voice, as she stood up and walked over to the table and Josh followed her. Looking into his eyes, she whispered, "He asked me to marry him."

The look of shock and horror on Josh's face hurt her and, in a strained voice, he repeated, "He asked you to marry him. And you want me to talk you out of it?"

Shaking her head, Amy replied, "You don't have to; I already said 'yes'. I really like him and it isn't as if I have any other options, is it?"

Trying to look into her eyes, Josh whispered back, "Amy, that isn't a reason to marry someone."

"You can't talk me out of it, J, and if you can't, no-one can."

There was a long silence and Josh stood there, staring at her, before finally stated, in a tight voice, "Fine, Amy, but you have to tell our daughter."

That made Amy's heart hurt and she looked down at the ground in order to cover up her embarrassment, before finally nodding, "Fine, I'll tell her later today." When Josh said nothing else, she picked up her coat and murmerred, "I'll see you later."

As the door closed, Josh ran his hands through his hair. Amy was engaged to be married to someone else.

Hours later, when Sam was awake, he noticed that Josh seemed distracted and when he asked him what was wrong, his friend just mumbled something about Amy.

That afternoon, when Sam was at Donna and Mallory's, Amy and Allan's engagement was announced on the television, they were all very confused. Amy had initiated her kiss with Josh and the two of them had been flirting, so why was she engaged to be married to someone else, when she obviously still loved Josh?

After lunch, Sam made his way to Leo's office and he heard crying coming from his boss's office. It was Mallory. Sam stood paralysed for a couple of seconds, wondering what to do, as he was torn, there was a part of him that wanted to comfort Mallory, but there was a part of him which wanted to stay as far away from her as possible. He followed his first idea and walked into the office.

"Hey, Mallory. Are you ok?" He knew that it was a stupid question, but he had no other idea of how to start this conversation.

Mallory wiped her eyes and replied, "I'm fine, thanks, Sam." The two of them didn't really know each other that well, so she asked where Josh was.

Sitting down in a chair next to her, Sam sighed. "He's with the girls. I think he's taking Amy's engagement pretty hard."

"I just can't believe that she's going to marry Allan, after everything she and Josh have been through. She kissed him a couple of weeks ago. Is she mad?" She sighed, then confessed, "I found out that when Sean and I were together, years ago, he cheated on me with a friend of mine from secondary school."

Unsure of how to respond, Sam murmured that he was sorry.

"Oh, no, it's fine, really. I can live without him-I'm far better off without him; we would never have worked together and he obviously didn't love me enough. But I don't care. He wasn't the person with whom I wanted to spend my life, anyway."

Sam frowned and asked, "So, if that's the case, why did you agree to marry him?"

Mallory looked down at her hands and whispered, "Because the person I wanted to spend my life with died and I can never have them back."

"You had a boyfriend who died?"

Instead of replying, Mallory mused, "I guess, sometimes the right person can be right in front of you. Is it just me or do you ever wonder what Josh and Donna would be like as a couple?"

Shaking his head, Sam protested, "No. No. They love each other like siblings; there could never be anything more between them."

"Yeah, I know that there isn't and there never will be, but what if there was?" Their eyes met and Sam started to wonder if Mallory knew of his feelings for her.

Joe made his way over to Josh's flat in order to talk to him; Donna and CJ had taken his sons and Naomi and Catherine-Françoise to the park and he wanted to talk to Josh, as he knew how much he meant to Donna and he and Josh had formed a friendship.

"Hi, Josh." He smiled, as he walked into the flat. "How are you?"

Walking over to the kettle, Josh replied, "I'm fine, really, Joe. Did Donna send you?"

Joe shook his head. "No, I came here to talk to you, because I wanted to-not because my girlfriend wanted me to." He waited until Josh was facing him before continuing, "You know, Clara and I broke up for a while and she became involved with someone else. Seeing her with someone else broke my heart, as I was still in love with her, even though I didn't realise it and she was still in love with me. We were both too suborn to admit it to ourselves and each other. Anyway, she married this guy and it broke my heart, because I still loved her."

"What happened?" Josh asked, passing a cup of tea to Joe.

"They got divorced. Clara came and told me, hoping that I'd admit my feelings for her then. Like an idiot, I didn't. It took me until their divorce was final for me to act on my feelings and we got back together. My point is that it took us ages to admit our feelings, but when we did, we ended up together, until she died. What I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't give up on Amy yet. Even if she marries this guy, it may not last." He sat down at the table and inquired, "How's Naomi?"

Sitting down also, Josh replied, "She's devastated; she's worried that if Amy has other children, she'll forget all about her. I don't think Amy will have other children, though."

Swallowing his coffee, Joe asked, "What makes you say that?"

Josh smiled. "Well, unlike Donna, it's never been her dream to have kids. I mean, she was happy when she found out that she was pregnant with Naomi, but it wasn't her dream, like it's Donna's. You and Donna are fine, aren't you?"

Smiling, Joe nodded. "Yes, we're great. The boys are very fond of her and I love her. After Clara died, I never thought I'd be so lucky as to find someone like her, but, here I am, with a beautiful, kind, caring young woman. Can I ask you something: have you and Donna ever dated?"

"Amy asked me the same thing. No, Donna and I are just friends, genuinely. I love her like a sister and I'm sure that she feels the same way about me."

Joe just nodded and then asked Josh about then his job interview was going to be.

Naomi slid off the swing, then ran over to Donna and asked, "Is Dad going to drop me off at Mum's soon?"

"Yes, Naomi." replied Donna, as she pulled the 8-year-old onto her knee.

Naomi made herself comfortable on Donna's knee, then whispered, "I don't want Mum to marry that man; she and Dad belong together. I want to have a family and, when she marries this man, I'm never going to have that."

Donna and CJ exchanged a look, then Donna kissed Naomi's head. "I'm sorry, honey. I know you really wanted that."

As Naomi ran back over to the swings, Mallory sat with Donna and CJ and asked, "Can I ask you something? Sam kept looking at me in a weird way. Do either of you know why?"

No answer came.

That evening, Josh knocked on the door of Amy's flat and waited. The door opened and Naomi ran into the arms of her mum and Amy invited Josh into the question and saw that he was looking at her in a strange way.

When Naomi was busy playing, she asked, smiling, "J, why are you looking at me like that?"

Chuckling and forcing himself to look at me, Josh replied, "I-er-I had a dream about you last night."

"Was it a nightmare?" she asked, in a teasing way.

The smiling fading from his face, her ex-boyfriend shook his head. "No. We were 18 and I-I asked you to marry me and you said 'yes'."

Amy looked down at the floor, then, in an attempt to keep her voice even, asked, "What happened next, after I accepted?"

"I woke up." Their eyes met and for a while, they stood in silence, watching each other, wondering what the other was trying to communicate in their eyes.

This trance was broken when Allan walked and kissed Amy. Josh let himself out of the flat. As he walked away, he looked back and saw that Amy was standing at the door, watching him walk away. If only, she thought, what happened in his dream, had happened in real life.


	18. Chapter 17: The one that got away

**I do not own 'The West Wing'. please, please review. :)**

Chapter 17: The one that got away.

Three weeks later…

It was now only a couple of days before Amy and Allan's wedding day. Amy and Charlie's parents were both in Washington, helping to organise the wedding and Zoe was helping them as well. Naomi was very pleased that she was going to be the bridesmaid, but she was upset with the fact that her dad was not going to be attending. All of his friends were going to be there and he and her mum hadn't date for over eight years, so she didn't understand why he wouldn't go to her mum's wedding.

Amy had not been surprised when Josh had declined the invitation; she had not expected him to go, as she knew that she could not have attended his wedding to Kate, so she did understand the pain through which he was going, but she also knew that he had no acted on his feelings for her, so he had no right to be angry with her, even though she knew that he was.

After taking Naomi dress shopping, Donna sat down with her boyfriend and asked him what dress she would wear.

Smiling, he replied, "Whatever you wear, you'll look amazing." Donna smiled and they kissed deeply. Their relationship was the best Donna had ever been in; the love she felt for Joe was without equal and she knew that he felt the same way. She was glad that her mum approved of their relationship.

"How's Josh?" Joe asked.

Donna sighed. "Devastated, I think. He really cares about Amy and seeing her marry someone else is killing him. I don't think Charlie's very happy about it. He thinks that his sister's marrying the wrong person for the wrong reasons."

"She is entitled to move on."

"Yes, but I don't think that she loves her fiancée, so why is she marrying him? Why would people marry if not for love?" She rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder and closed her eyes.

The door opened and Josh and Sam walked in, followed by Naomi and CJ. Naomi ran over to Donna and Joe and jumped up onto the sofa next to them.

Turning to her brother, Donna began, "Sam, you were with Mallory when she told you about Sean, weren't you?"

As he took food from his sister's fridge, Sam nodded. "Yes, I was. Why?"

Donna and CJ exchanged a look, then the former continued. "Well, later that day, she said that you had been watching her in an odd way. You didn't tell her about your feelings, did you?"

"Gosh, no. I would never do that."

"Well, in the case, if you don't want her to find out, don't flirt with her." Joe remarked, before asked, "Hang on: you're both single now, so why don't you ask her out?"

Sam shook his head. "No. I can't tell her; she doesn't feel the same about me, so my telling her would just be very awkward, so what would be the point? Besides, I couldn't date her, because Leo would kill me."

"Leo would love you compared with Sean." Josh commented, smiling to himself. "But, considering that he hated Sean, that may not be saying something."

There was a silence, then Sam asked, "Josh, you know Mallory better than any of us. Do you think that she could ever look at me in that way?"

Before his friend could reply, Mallory entered with Charlie. "Guess what?" she cried, running over to her roommate, beaming. "I have a date for Amy's wedding!"

Sam's face fell and he walked over to the far side of the flat, so that he was as far away from Mallory as he could be.

"That's great!" Donna smiled, fully aware of her brother's awkwardness. "Who is he?"

Sitting down on a chair, Mallory answered, "He works with us, he's an English teacher. His name's Clark Dunn and he's so cute."

Charlie laughed and asked, "How many teachers have you dated at that school?" His tone was amused; he was very fond of Mallory and she and his wife were very close friends.

"Only Rick and now Clark, so only two of them." Mallory replied, then she asked Charlie, "Where are your parents?"

"Mum's seeing to the final preparations for the wedding and Dad's giving Allan the talk. Did you get the talk, Josh?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah, I did-two hours of my life I'll never get back."

Laughing, CJ asked, "Wait, what's the talk?"

Sipping his drink, Charlie replied, "It's basically Dad telling him not to hurt his daughter and if they do, there'll be trouble." The smile fell from his face and he murmured, "I think Amy's making a terrible mistake. Mum and Dad think the same thing."

Josh moved uncomfortably and sighed. He rocked Catherine-Françoise in his arms and then passed her to CJ, who had wanted to hold the baby for ages.

"Uncle Charlie," Naomi began, "if you think it's a bad idea, tell Mum and she may not marry him! Tell her, please."

Charlie walked over to his niece and shook his head. "No, sweetie, I can't. I'm sorry. If your mum wouldn't listen to your dad, then she won't listen to me."

Just then, Joe's mobile phone started ringing. He excused himself and made his way over to the bay window and answering it. The others talked in quiet voices, so that they did not disturb him.

After a while, Donna stood up and joined Joe at the window. He wasn't on the phone anymore, he was sitting in the window seat, with his mobile in his hands, staring blankly ahead of him. His eyes were wet.

Donna threw her brother and friends a look and they all left the flat, not wanting to intrude on something that was personal.

Sitting down next to her boyfriend, Donna asked, "Joe, what's wrong?"

"That was Iris. She-Pete's at the hospital. He fell over and he's in a comma. Nic's really upset and so's Iris. They're at G.W." Joe told her, in a tight voice.

Donna squeezed his hands and asked, "Do you want me to go with you?"

Looking into her eyes, Joe nodded.

Donna stood up, but Joe pulled her back by the hand, so she sat back down. Joe brushed his hand against her face, then whispered, "I-I just wanted to tell you that I love you, so much, Donna. You and the boys and my parents and sister, you're my family. I just had to tell you that."

Smiling slightly, his girlfriend replied, in the same tone, "Joe, I love you too, more than I ever thought I could love anyone. Now, let's go and see Peter. I'll be right beside you, all the way. Just hold my hand."

At George Washington Hospital, Donna and Joe found the room where Peter was. Nicolas ran over to his dad and hugged him and, much to Donna's surprise, he hugged her and squeezed her tightly. Joe hugged Iris.

For hours, they sat watching Peter, wondering if he ever going to wake up. Joe spoke to the doctors and they assured him that they were doing all that they could for his youngest son. When Joe needed to have a break, Donna stayed with Nicolas and Iris, to ensure that they were as alright as they could be.

Later that evening, Sam was at Lisa and Bradley's, spending time with Demi, Nathan and Devon, so as soon as Naomi and Catherine-Françoise were in bed, Josh decided to watch something by himself, which was a very rare occurrence.

There was a knock on the door and Josh answered it. It was Donna and she looked exhausted.

Josh sat her down on the sofa and sat next to her, with his arm around her. "What's wrong?"

"Joe's youngest son, Peter, is in a comma. Joe told me to go home for a couple of hours; his mum and stepdad are there now, so I suppose that's something." She wiped her eyes, then whispered, "Josh, I love him so much. I can't bear to see him in that kind of pain. It kills me!" Josh hugged her and she cried.

Afterwards, she was too tired to go home, so she slept in Josh's bed. Initially, he slept on the sofa, but it was hurting his back, so Donna told him to come into the bed and they would sleep on separate sides of the bed; she just didn't want to see him in pain when he was being so kind to her.

Early in the next morning, when Donna woke up, she knew that something was different. She was entangled in Josh's arms and she was holding his hand. They had obviously moved into that position in their sleep. Careful so as not to wake him, Donna moved out of his arms and sat up in bed, running her hands through her hair.

The day of Amy and Allan's wedding was upon them and Josh felt terrible. How had he let Amy slip through his fingers, twice? She was the mother of his eldest daughter and his first love. Why had he been so stupid?

Naomi was excited about being a bridesmaid, but she wished that it was her mum and dad's wedding, not her mum marrying someone else.

Early that morning, Amy made her way to Charlie and Zoe's flat, as Zoe and her mum were going to help her with her hair. Her dad came to the door, already dressed in his suit. He embraced his daughter and held her close. He feared that she was doing the wrong thing and he knew that most people thought that same thing.

About an hour later, Amy walked back to her car, but she paused and went up to Josh's flat and she was glad to find that he was in and alone.

"Hey, Amy." Josh said. He was still in his pyjamas, as he was not going to the wedding.

"J, shut up and listen!" Amy snapped, as she walked closer to him. There was a tone in her voice which her ex-boyfriend had never heard before. "I have to tell you something, I have to confess something: Ever since our daughter was born, I regret breaking up with you, but I can't go back on what I'd done. You're an amazing, dad, J, and I-I can't believe that I let you go. If I hadn't been an idiot, it would be you whom I'd be marrying today. I can't build a time machine and go back, though I wish I could." There were tears in her eyes now, then she whispered, "I wish I could be with you, J. You mean more to me that you'll ever know and you deserve far better than me. Goodbye."

With that, she turned away from him and walked out of the flat, with tears streaming down her face. She ran to her car and cried.

5:00PM...

Just as Amy and Allan were about to take their vows, someone caught Amy's eye. Josh was standing at the back of the room, watching her, with love in his eyes.

"Amelia Ziegler, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Her eyes met with Josh's, then she looked back at Allan and whispered, in a chocked voice, "I do."

"Allan Perk, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

Smiling and squeezing Amy's hands, Allan nodded. "I do, with all my heart."

Donna saw Josh and she walked over to him and put her arms around him, seeing that he was in pain.

As Amy and Allan slid into the car, Allan looked back at Josh and threw him a triumphant smile, looking at Amy. He glared at her, then kissed her and the two of them went into the car.

Once in the car, Amy turned around and looked back at the only two people in the world whom she really loved: Josh and her daughter. They were there. She and Josh looked at each other and even as the car pulled away, Amy continued to look back until she could no longer see her true love.

"You're mine now, Amelia." Her husband whispered in a threatening way.

Glaring at him, Amy retorted, "Look, you tricked me, made me believe that you were someone you weren't-you asked me to marry you and then blackmailed me into saying 'yes'. I've kept my side of the deal, I'm your wife. Now you keep your side."

"Yes. I'll keep the fact that Josh Lyman was a drug addict to myself. Don't worry about that."


	19. Chapter 18: Rekindling

Chapter 18: Rekindling.

Two weeks later…

Much to Amy's delight, Allan had been called away on business and he had been away since their wedding day, so she had spoken to her lawyer and told her of the situation and she was going to tell Allan that she was going to annul their marriage, on the grounds that they had not consummated their relationship and that she had been coerced into it.

Back in Washington, no-one had any idea of the true nature of Amy's marriage to Allan.

It was a Saturday morning and bar Zoe, who was working, they were all having their breakfast at Donna and Mallory's. Naomi was playing on the floor and Catherine-Françoise was asleep in her Moses basket.

There was a knock on the door and Charlie answered it. It was Leo and Charlie and Amy's dad, Jed Bartlet. Charlie shook his father's hand, then Naomi ran over to her grandfather and hugged him. Jed lifted her up and spun her around. He then sat down and watched Catherine-Françoise for a while, with his granddaughter on his knee.

"Do you and Leo know each other, Mr. Bartlet?" inquired, as they sat down after breakfast. She and Josh sat together in the armchair, as she felt safe with him.

Both Leo and Jed smiled, then the latter answered, "Yes, Leo and I have known each other for years. Not as long as he's known Josh's parents, but still, we go way back. He knew me when I was with my first wife. You know, I'm very glad that I have a daughter; girls are easier to handle; Charlie's very sensitive, whereas Amy's very strong."

At this remark, Charlie looked down at his hands and moved uncomfortably. Besides his father, everyone noticed, so Leo said, "Well, Jed, Mallory was hard work when she was a kid; she very rarely did as she was told." He chuckled and so did Josh and Mallory.

In an attempt to move the discussion onto safer ground, CJ asked, "So, how long have you and your wife been married?"

"Well, my first wife and I were married for a year when we had Charlie, but she died after he was born. A few months later, I married Abbey and we had Amy, so she and Charlie are the same age. Therefore, Abbey and I have been married for 25 years. I can't believe that I ended up with someone as smart and kind as Abbey, someone who wanted to have a relationship with a single father, who had a baby. I loved Iris, Charlie's mother dearly. She was about ten years my junior, but I loved her no the less and I was devastated when she died and left me with a baby."

Josh moved uncomfortable. For some reason, he had never been keen on Charlie and Amy's father; he knew that Amy had a better relationship with their dad than Charlie did, which confused him, as he had expected them to be close. In fact, Charlie was closer to Abbey than he was to Jed, which made sense as Josh preferred Abbey, as she was down-to-earth, firm and caring. He also remembered Jed's reaction when Amy had told him that she was pregnant with Naomi and he would never forget it. It had broken Amy's heart.

Flashback-8 years earlier…

As the car pulled up into the drive, Josh could tell that Amy thought that she was going to be sick. They had told his parents a couple of days before and they had been fine with it, relieved that they were going to be grandparents, but not that happy about the fact that Josh and Amy were no longer together, although they had separated before discovering Amy's pregnancy. They had been dating for a year and had consummated their relationship for the first time about a month before and a couple of weeks later, Amy had ended their relationship.

Abbey and Jed were very surprised to see their daughter with her ex-boyfriend, but they tried not to show this and invited them into the sitting room.

"Amy, why are you and Josh here?" Abbey asked, watching as they sat together, quite comfortably on the sofa; they were obviously on good terms despite no longer being a couple.

Josh and Amy exchanged a look, then Amy began, "Well, you know how Josh and I are no longer together. Well, about a month ago, we-we"-

"Had sex?" Abbey finished, so that her daughter didn't have to.

"Yes. Well, I-er-I'm pregnant." The word came out in a whisper and she avoided her dad's eyes. She felt Josh tense up next to her and she resisted the urge to reach out and take his hand.

Walking over to Amy, Abbey embraced both her and Josh in a hug, then asked, "How far along are you, sweetie?"

Aware that Amy could not answer, Josh did. "About a month, Ms. Ziegler."

Abbey hugged her daughter again and remarked, smiling, "Are you keeping it?"

Amy nodded, then turned her attention to her father, who had not said a word or moved in the slightest since she had said the word 'pregnant'. "Dad, please say something." She looked into the eyes of the man whom she had always admired and loved, begging for him to say something.

Jed shook his head and asked, "How long have you two been…active?"

"Jed!" Abbey protested, but her daughter replied, "Just the past month, Dad, and we'd been together for a year, so we didn't rush into it. Josh and I made the decision together, so don't be angry with him, in fact he was the one who was reluctant, not me!"

Sighing, Jed remarked, "Well, you have to get back together and get married, it's the right thing to do, for you and for the baby."

"Dad, Josh and I broke up for a reason and I'm not going to marry him just because of this baby! That's not right; one has to be in love in order to marry!"

"You should've been in love when you were intimate!" Jed roared back.

It was only than that Josh and Abbey noticed that tears were falling down Amy's face. She stood up and glared at her father. "I did love Josh when we did it, so much that it hurt! I love him more than you'll ever understand, Dad, but we're over and you have to accept that and this baby and if you can't, you won't be my dad anymore!" With that, she ran out of the house and back to the car.

Josh and Abbey ran out to her, but she would only let in the former, as she only felt safe with him and she wanted to be him. He held her close and told her that everything was going to be alright, even though neither of them were sure if anything was ever going to be alright again.

Present day…

Much to Josh, Sam and Leo's joy, they were called into work, which meant that they could stop listening to Jed.

As they entered the building, Josh saw Amy waiting at the reception, with her suitcase. After making sure that it was alright with Leo, Josh walked over to her and asked her why she was there, to which she asked if she could speak with him in private.

They walked into a side room and sat down. Amy had her glasses on, as she was tired, but she knew that Josh had not seen her in glasses for ages and that made her smile. "J, this is what's happened. I've divorced Allan Perk and he's in prison."

Unable to understand what she had just told him, Josh asked, "Can you go back to the beginning, Amy?"

"Well, Allan tricked me into thinking that he was a great guy. He asked me to marry me and blackmailed me into accepting." Amy sighed, then continued, "He blackmailed with the fact that he knew about your drug abdication and I wasn't about to let that destroy you. So, I married him and then I started gathering evidence and now he's in jail and I've divorced him, so I'm happy." Her eyes searched his.

Josh stared at her. "You married that scumbag to protect me? Amy, why? You shouldn't have."

Despite the tone of the conversation, Amy smiled. "You would've done the same for me. Besides, it's what you do when you love someone."

There was a silence and Josh looked into her eyes. "You love me?" he asked, in almost a whisper. When she just looked at him, he said, "I have a weak's holiday the day after tomorrow. Donna and my parents want to look after the girls. Where do you want to go?"

"You're asking me if I want to go on holiday with you?"

Laughing and nodded, Josh replied. "Yes, Amy, I am."

Smiling and taking off her glasses, Amy suggested, "How about Venice? Are you sure about this?"

"Yes, I'm very sure." He reached across and took hold of her hands, Amy squeezed it, then said, "You'd better go, J. I'll talk to you later."

Josh made his way to Leo's office and sat down.

His boss walked in and announced, "We've got a very important meating the day after tomorrow. Would you mind staying for it?" When Josh didn't reply in the affirmative immediately as he always did, Leo looked up from the paper and asked, "What's wrong?"

Josh shook his head. "Nothing. I was-I was supposed to go away with"-

"Amy? I heard that she's divorced Senator Perk and she's back in town. Go, I'll get Sam to sit in on it."

Knowing that Sam had planned to spend the day with Demi, Josh insisted, "No, it's ok, Leo. I need to be here for this."

Smiling slightly, Leo replied, "No, you don't. Go with Amy. My ex-wife and I divorced because my job meant that I didn't spend enough time with her. Don't make the same mistake as I did."

Back in Josh's office, Sam asked Josh what was wrong and his friend told him that he had planned to go to Venice with Amy, but that wasn't going to work out because of the meating they had. "Wait, do you think Donna would like to have the girls tonight?"

Sam was confused, but he nodded and said that his sister always loved having Naomi and Catherine-Françoise.

An hour later, when Amy stepped into Josh's flat, the first thing she noticed that was it was made up as his room at university and she knew what the significance of that was.

"Where're the girls?" she asked, as she slipped off her coat and shoes.

Dimming the lights and walking over to her, Josh answered, "They're with Donna and Mallory. They're fine, don't worry." He smiled as he came to stand in front of her.

Amy studied his face and the love in his eyes for her was evident and it made her so happy. "You can turn on the news, you know, J."

Josh slid the remote from her hands and replied, "I don't want to." There was a look in his eyes which she had not seen for years. She smiled, then pulled him closer by his shirt. He leaned in and they gently kiss. She kissed him more passionately, in order to give him confidence.

When their lips parted, they walked over to the sofa and sat down, holding hands. There, they sat and talked for hours.

There was a knock on the door and Charlie answered it, so see his father. Jed smiled slightly and asked, "Hey, Charlie, can I come in for a second? I'm not disturbing you and Zoe am I?"

"No, she's out with Mallory." His son replied, in a flat voice, as he stood aside to let Jed into his flat.

After Charlie made Jed a cup of tea, he sat down next to him and turned off the television. He was wondering why his father was there, but he was not going to ask him; he was going to wait until his father let go of his pride and spoke.

A very long and awkward silence followed until Jed finally spoke. "Charlie, about what I said earlier and what I've probably said before, I didn't mean that I love Amy more than you. That would never happen. I just find her easier to handle." He bit his lip. "I know that I haven't always been the best father to you and I'm sorry."

Charlie smiled. "Thanks, Dad, that means a lot." He paused, then asked, "Why did you marry Abbey so soon after my mother died?"

Sighing, Jed ran his hands through his receding hair. "I was lonely, I was missing your mother and I had you to look after and I felt as if I couldn't cope."

"Well, Josh coped well with Catherine-Françoise after Kate's death and he also had Naomi."

"That was different. Are you angry that I married Abbey?"

Shaking his head, Charlie replied, "No, I-I I love Mum and I love Amy. I guess I just wish that I had some memories of my mother."

Jed reached out to his son's hand and squeezed it. "I know, son, I know. Your mother would be so proud of you, Charlie."

Charlie smiled and whispered, "Thanks, Dad."

Jed stood up, patted Charlie on the shoulder and left the apartment, leaving Charlie sitting there, wondering what had promoted his father to talk to him.


	20. Chap 19: Love them without liking them

**I do not own 'The West Wing' or any of the characters, but I do own some of the characters in this story. **

**Please review. :). **

Chapter 19: Love them, without liking them.

Two months later…

Josh and Amy were now officially together and Naomi was thrilled that her parents were back together. Nicolas, Joe's youngest son, was awake and getting back on his feat, which had pleased Donna almost as much as it had pleased Joe; she and Joe were madly in love and they spent most of their nights at each other's flats. Donna tried to spend as much time as possible at Joe's, as Mallory and her new boyfriend, Clark Dunn, were very often in their flat and were at a different stage in their relationship than Donna and Joe.

It was a Saturday morning and they were all having breakfast at Donna and Mallory's. Naomi, Nicolas and Peter were playing together in the sitting room.

As they finished their breakfast, Charlie asked, "Guys, can I ask you something? Zoe and I, well, before we were married, we always talked about having kids and since we've been married, we haven't talked about it, so why do you think that is?"

Mallory smiled. "Charlie, Zoe would love to have kids with you; she's just too afraid to discuss it with you, that's all. Just ask her about it and she'll be fine."

As Mallory spoke, both Josh and Donna saw Sam gazing at her, with his mouth open and Josh shoved him a little and gave him a look.

"Donna, what do you think?"

"I think Mallory's right; both you and Zoe want to have kids, so why not?" Donna gave her voice, a little unsure of whether it was what Charlie wanted to hear or not.

After texting back Danny, CJ turned to Josh and asked, "Josh, Danny has a source who's saying that you and Amy Ziegler, Naomi's mum, are a couple; they saw you together. Is this true?"

"Who wants to know," smiled Josh, "my friend, CJ, or the reporter CJ and her ex-boyfriend, Danny?"

Everyone laughed, besides CJ, who took her job and her private life very seriously. She forced a smile. "Danny just asked me and I wanted an answer, as your friend." She hastily added and she saw Donna smile and didn't doubt that Donna and Mallory had been the first people Josh had told.

Smiling at Donna trying to suppress her laughter, Josh replied, "Yes, CJ, Amy and I are back together."

"Finally!" Sam exclaimed and Charlie just sat there, smiling, saying that his sister had told him all ready. "Have you consummated your relationship yet?"

Josh shook his head.

Sam snorted. "You've been together for 2 months, what's taking you so long?" He knew that his friend would not answer his question.

Ten minutes later, when Donna, Mallory and CJ were ready go shopping and have a coffee, the door opened and Leo entered. "Mal," he walked over to his daughter and took off her coat, "Mallory, your mother's in town and she wants to see you. I just thought I'd let you know. I'm going to go and pick her up from the airport." He kissed her on the check and walked out of the flat.

Annoyed and confused, Mallory sighed and dropped her handbag onto the sofa. "Well, I guess I won't be having a girls' day out. I am looking forward to Abbey's party, though."

Charlie snorted. "You're looking forward to my mum's party. You've obviously never lived." He laughed, then asked, "Are you still dating that teacher?"

Sam's attention was brought back to Mallory from the television. He saw Josh and Joe roll their eyes. "Are you still dating him?" he inquired, trying not to sound too interested.

"Yeah, I am; we're still dating, so I'm going with him." Replied Mallory, unaware of why Sam was asking her. She saw Donna give Sam a look and she wondered why, but she was also wondering why her mum wanted to come and see her.

At the same time Josh's and Charlie's mobile phones started ringing, so they both stood up. Josh went over to the window and Charlie walked out into the hall, so that he could speak to Zoe privately.

"Hey, J," Amy smiled, on the other side of phone, "I've just arrived in New York. I just thought I'd let you know. Give Naomi my love, won't you? I'll be back tomorrow night."

Josh nodded. "I will. Are you looking forward to your mum's party?"

"Yes; she's really glad that you and I are back together, so's Dad. And I'm very happy about it." There was a long silence, then Amy said, "Right, I'll go now. I'll see you tomorrow night. Bye."

Josh hung up and locked his mobile, to see his friends watching him questioningly. They all looked very confused. Sitting back on the sofa next to Sam and Joe, he asked, "Why are you all looking at me?"

Joe laughed and looked at his girlfriend, who rolled her eyes, before asking, "Josh, have you and Amy not told each other that you love each other yet?" Sam and CJ looked down at the floor and Josh knew that they were laughing. He exchanged a look with Mallory, who threw him a reassuring smile.

Sighing, Josh replied, "Well, no. I mean, I do love her and I'm pretty sure that she feels the same way, but…"

"But what?" Joe asked.

"Saying those words to her again, would make me feel committed and I don't want to push her. I want commitment and I want to be with her, but I don't want to pressure her, not after everything she's been through. I'm just glad that we've got past the thing which broke us up years ago."

The door of Donna and Mallory's flat opened and Mallory's mum, Jeanie O'Brien, stood there. Besides Josh, who had known Jeanie since childhood, they were all struck by how much Mallory resembled this woman; like Mallory, she had red, curly hair and green eyes. Charlie walked in and quickly crossed the room over to where the other men were sitting, as he was not sure who this woman was, until he saw her face.

Jeanie smiled, then hugged her daughter. This action looked rather awkward to most of them, but Josh knew that Jeanie had never been very affectionate. He was wondering why Jeanie had come to see Mallory.

Almost as if they could feel the tension in the room, Sam, Charlie and CJ left Donna and Mallory's flat, but Donna offered Jeanie a cup of coffee, which she accepted; Donna knew that Mallory trusted her almost as much as she trusted Josh and she knew Jeanie a little. Joe took Naomi, Catherine-Françoise and his sons to the park, so that they were not there, disturbing whatever was going on.

"So, Donna, how's your job?" Jeanie asked, as the three women and Josh sat down at the table, with their coffee. "I know that you and Mallory work in the same school."

Confused about why Jeanie was asking about her work, Donna replied, "Yeah, we do work together. I'm a History teacher."

"So, you know Mallory's boyfriend, Rick?"

Donna exchanged a confused look with Josh, confused; why did Jeanie think that her daughter was still dating Rick, when they had broken up ages ago? Why had Mallory not told her mother the truth, as she knew that Leo knew about Mallory's currant boyfriend, Clark Dunn? "Yeah, I know him; he's a nice man."

Jeanie sipped her coffee and smiled. "Josh, you and Amy are back together?"

"Er, yeah. Yeah, we are. Naomi's very happy about it."

"She hasn't moved in with you, has she?"

Josh laughed, more to hide his embarrassment than anything else. "No. She hasn't moved in, because the place would look very different." It was then that the remembered that Mallory inherited her sense of humour from her father and that her mother possessed no sense of humour at all and this was evident when Jeanie stared at him blankly. Donna and Mallory looked down at the floor in order to hide their laughter.

Jeanie sighed, and turned back to her daughter. "I was so shocked to hear about Sean's affair, honey. I can't believe that he cheated on you."

"I didn't surprise me, Mother." replied Mallory, in a tight voice, as she ran her hands through her hair. "I didn't know about it at the time, so I would've left him anyway, so it wouldn't have made a difference-except, I wouldn't have accepted his proposal."

Shaking her head, Jeanie sighed, "You should have married him, Mallory; besides his affair, he's a good man and you would have had a good life with you. You could be married by now, with children.

Mallory glared at her mother and snapped, "Mother, I didn't love Sean and I never really did; the only person I have ever really loved died years ago and why would you marry someone whom you don't love?"

"I did."

There was a long silence, then Mallory found her voice. "What do you mean?"

Jeanie sighed again. "I loved your father, but before we were married, I barely knew him; I was pushed into it by my parents. It was only when we were married, that I began to love him."

Mallory stared at her mother and asked, "You-you didn't love him?"

"No, but I did love him after a while and we were very happy for years, Mallory. You were born to two people who loved each other, so you don't need to worry and we loved you no matter what, even after we divorced."

"You divorced when I was 16." Mallory pointed out, glancing at Josh.

Jeanie sighed. "Mallory, your father and I divorced because we weren't working as a couple anymore. You know that. He was spending so much time at work and with Noah…." She trailed off and looked down at her hands, guiltily; she knew that Leo had supported Noah, as she had supported Ruth after Joanie's death, but she also knew that helping Noah had been Leo's priority-over caring for his own wife.

There was a dead silence and Josh looked down at his hands, as he knew that a part of Jeanie resented his dad for needing Leo's support so much after Joanie's death and he was reminded of why his mum was now closer to Leo than to Jeanie.

The door opened and Leo came in and he did not look happy. "Have you told her yet, Jeanie?"

Jeanie shook her head.

"Well, tell her and get on with it, because she's wondering why you're here, so spare her of wondering, please!" Leo snapped. When Jeanie said nothing, he whispered, "If you don't tell Mal, I will and I think it would be best coming from you."

Donna exchanged a confused look with Josh, but he looked just as confused as she did.

Jeanie turned back to her daughter. "Mallory, I'm seeing someone, I have a boyfriend."

Silence fell and Mallory was struggling to fit together what her mother had just told her. Josh reached out and squeezed her hand, knowing how hard this was going to be for her. He also knew why Leo was in such a bad mood. Finally, Mallory found her voice and asked, "Is it serious? I mean, do you love him?"

Leo moved uncomfortably and Donna gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Yes, I do love him, Mallory, I'm sorry. We've moved in together." Jeanie was avoiding looking her daughter in the eye. "His name's Mark Smith. I think you'd like him."

Mallory's eyes connected with her dad's and she could see the raw pain in his eyes. "How long have you been together?"

"A couple of months." replied her mother.

Donna made a move to stand up, but both Josh and Mallory pulled her back down to her seat, as Mallory really wanted Donna to be there.

CJ entered her office, opened her laptop and sat down at her desk. She knew that it was a Saturday and that she wasn't supposed to be working, but she did have stuff to do and it stopped her from thinking too much. Ever since she and Danny had started working with each other, which was since Kate's death, their relationship mirrored their relationship as it had been before they had started dating, years ago. CJ couldn't really remember why they had broken up, as they had loved each other, but they had drifted apart. She wondered if he still looked at her in that way, or if, in his eyes, they were just friends, although they had never had a platonic friendship; they had fancied each other from the very first moment they had seen each other and CJ wondered if, for her, that feeling would ever go away. She had only ever truly loved three men in her life so far and Danny had been the third, after Ben and after her first love.

She sighed, thinking about how she felt about Josh and Amy being a couple again. There was a part of her which was happy for them, as she knew that they truly loved each other, they always had, and they deserved to have another chance at their relationship. However, there was another side of her which thought that their relationship, this time around, was not a good idea, for them or for their daughter. What was to say that their relationship would work this time and what if the reason why they had separated last time separated them again? Not that CJ knew why they had broken up eight years ago, although now she thought about it, she knew vertically nothing about Josh's life, besides the fact that he had a daughter and that his parents lived in Connecticut. That was all, she didn't even know if he had any siblings. She wondered what Sam and Donna's, as Josh's best friends, thought about his relationship with Amy; she had not had the chance to ask them since Josh and Amy had been back together.

A knock on her office door brought CJ back to reality. She opened her eyes and was very surprise to see that it was Danny, dressed in casual clothes, so he obviously was not there on business. So why was he there? "Hey, Danny," CJ smiled, "what can I do for you at…11:00 on a Saturday morning?"

Danny sat down opposite her and asked, "Well, I was wondering if my source was correct: is Josh dating Amy again?"

CJ thought for a second, then replied, "Danny, I assured him that I asked him as a friend, not as a reporter. Besides, even if your source were true, it's not a story."

"CJ, I watched them as they dated for a year at uni, I watched them after they broke up and after Naomi was born. I watched the two of them for the next three years to see if they ever got back together and they never did."

"Then why did a source give it to you, if they're your friends and you could just ask them yourself?"

Hesitating slightly, Danny sighed. "CJ, my source told me that Amy spent the night at Josh's flat two months ago."

"Danny, they were talking; they didn't do anything and even if they, and when they do, it's nobody's business!"

"CJ, Josh was engaged to be married to Kate Harper, an NSC Advisor to the President of the United States. Kate died about 6 months ago, after giving birth to their daughter. It hasn't been a year since Kate's death and the Chief of Staff to Senator McGarry is dating his ex-girlfriend, with whom he had another daughter. That's news CJ!"

There was a long silence and CJ stared at her ex-boyfriend, in shock, wondering if he had really said what she had heard him say and, if he had, why was he being such an idiot? "Danny, from the point of view of the press, Josh and Amy were in a stable relationship for over a year, they have a daughter and now they're back together. And from the point of view of someone who claims to be the friend of both Josh and Amy, do you not think that Josh deserves to be happy again? He loved Kate so much and when she died, he was beyond devastated. But he and Amy love each other and they deserve to have another chance: a chance to piece their family-them and their daughter-back together. So please, don't run this as a story, as it isn't a story."

Sighing, Danny smiled and nodded. "Ok." He stood up, then turned back to CJ and asked, "What are you wearing to Ms. Ziegler's birthday party?"

Struck and shock by the question, CJ stood up slowly, lost for words. "Why do you ask?"

A smile spread across Danny's face. "I was just wondering. Do you have a date?"

"No, I don't need one." answered CJ, fully aware by his tone of voice and his facial expression why he was asking and what he wanted, but she didn't want to give in easily.

"Ok."

Their eyes met, then Danny opened the door and walked out of the room, leaving CJ with no doubt in her minds that Danny wanted to be her boyfriend again. She also knew that she felt the same way and she wanted the same thing as he wanted. She just did not want it to appear as if she were desperate, but she knew that Danny knew that, because he was the person who knew her best in the world-besides one other person.

After having lunch with Mallory, Donna and Jeanie, Josh decided that the only way that he was going to escape from Jeanie was to go to work for a while; he knew that the girls were safe with Joe and Sam was with them as well.

As soon as he entered his office, he saw that Leo's office, which was next to him, was occupied and he guessed why Leo was at work; it was what he did when he was stressed or upset about something, although he preferred it to the alternative.

"Hey, Leo." He smiled, as he entered his boss's office. He saw that Leo wasn't working; he was just trying to in order to seek some kind of distraction.

Leo looked up. "Hey, kid. Is Jeanie still at Mallory and Donna's?"

Sitting down in the chair next to Leo's, Josh nodded. "Yeah, she is. Naomi and Catherine-Françoise are with Sam and Joe, so they're in safe hands." He laughed, then his face turned serious. "Are you alright, Leo?"

Leo threw his head back onto the back of his chair and exhaled. "Jeanie and I were together for thirty-two years, you know? Not as long as your parents, but a pretty long time, and then it was all over." He hesitated, then continued, although he was unsure if he should or not. "I guess Joanie's death affected us as well-not as badly as your parents and you, of course, but it did and we were worried about Mal and you. After your parents separated, I spent time with your dad, ensuring that he was ok. That still makes me feel guilty."

"Guilty, why?" Josh asked, in a tight voice.

"Your dad starting drinking because he had no other way of coping with the death of his daughter and I drank with him. I almost feel as if I encouraged him to do so. I didn't even know that he and your mum had separated until your grandfather told me. I'm sorry, Josh. I really am."

Biting his lip, Josh sighed. "I know Dad was grieving, but it was his decision to start drinking heavily and it was his decision to give up on his relationship with Mum-temporally-and move in with Granda."

Leo ran his hands through hair. "I don't know how you coped. I really don't. I mean, you'd been through a terrible experience and on top of that, your parents separated. If that had been me, I couldn't have coped like you did." As he said that, he knew that Josh had struggled with it later and that had been why he had become addicted to drugs. He looked over at Josh and saw that there were tears in his eyes.

"I still have nightmares about the fire," the young man confessed in a whisper, "and I can still hear her voice, telling me to get out of the house. The nightmares got worse after-after Kate died."

"Do the others know?"

Sighing, Josh replied, "Well, Sam knows that I have nightmares, but he doesn't know what they're about. I told Donna about how Joanie and how she died. I-I trust her more than Sam. I'm closer to Sam, but I trust Donna more."

"Does Amy know?"

"About Joanie? No, she doesn't know. I should've told her years ago, but it never came up." Josh looked down at his hands and closed his eyes, before asking, "Leo, do you-do you still love Jeanie?"

Looking Josh directly in the eyes, Leo replied, "Yes, I'll always love her. She was my first love and I don't know how I'm ever gonna get over her." He sighed. "But I have to, 'cause she's with someone else. I bet he's a complete idiot!" He laughed and Josh did the same, relieving the tension which had been in his shoulders since his sister had been mentioned.

"Mal doesn't like him already; she's on your side on this." Josh offered, knowing how much Mallory's support, or lack thereof, meant to her father.

Leo smiled. "Good, I'm glad my daughter thinks that. What does my son think?" he turned to look at Josh, smiling.

Josh smiled back, then replied, slowly, "He understands how you feel, but he thinks that you need to muster up the courage to move on, because Jeanie has." Their eyes met and Leo understood what Josh meant and he knew that Noah and Ruth would say that same thing. "Your parents raised a good man, Josh." He whispered, "Joanie would be very proud."

Looking down at his hands, Josh murmured, "I hope she would be. I only realised something recently: Donna looks a lot like Joanie, with the blonde hair and the eyes. Don't you think?"

"Yes, your dad said the same thing when the two of you became good friends. Do you see Donna like a sister, like Mallory?"

Josh considered the question before replying. "No, I mean not yet, but in time, I think I'll learn to love her like a sister." He smiled, then said, "Anyway, if you're okay, I should head back home." He hesitated, then asked, "Are you ok?"

Leo nodded. "Yeah, go spend time with your daughters."

Josh nodded, then stood up and watched the office, closing the door behind him. Leo smiled to himself, remembering the first time he had met Josh and remembering how sweat and innocent he had been, before his entire world had been crushed by the death of his beloved sister.

Flashback-20 years before…

It was December and the snow was so deep that Leo could not get back to Boston, to Jeanie and Mallory. He and Noah had been working together for a couple of months at the law firm in Connecticut, but they didn't really know each other.

Leo paced his office, wondering if there were any hotels at which he would stay until he could go home.

There was a knock on his door and Noah Lyman walked into his office. He smiled. "Hello, Leo. Are you stuck here?"

A little nervously, Leo nodded, "Yeah, I can't get back to Boston until the lines are cleared. Will there be any hotels which would take me for a night, I need somewhere to sleep?"

Noah walked into the office more. "You don't have to do that. You can come and stay with me and my family until you can go home."

"No, I wouldn't want to intrude"_

"Nonsense, you won't be intruding at all. Besides, you've worked in the Senate and that interests my youngest, so it's a win-win. My wife's a really good cook, so you won't starve." Noah had a very gentle quality to his voice and for the first time, Leo heard a German hint in his accent and wondered why that was; he had assumed that Noah was American-Jewish, but maybe his assumption had been incorrect.

As they walked back to Noah's home, Noah asked, "So, are you married?"

"Yes," Leo nodded, "my wife and I have a daughter, Mallory. She's 9. What about you?"

Noah chuckled to himself before replying. "Ruth and I have two daughters and a son: Rebekah, Joanie and Josh."

"How old are they?"

"Becky's 13, Joanie's 9 and Josh is 5 and-before you ask-Ruth and I were 15 when we had Becky, 19 when we had Joanie and 23 when we had Josh, so we were very young."

Leo stared at his college and asked, "Why did you have kids so early? I'm sorry, that's really rude; don't answer that."

Much to his surprise, Noah laughed. "We got married because we didn't see the point in waiting. You see, Ruth and I are both German. We, along with our families were…in camps. We were friends before that, but after the war, we came over here and, I guess, we saw no point in waiting when we loved each other and when we'd nearly lost our lives." He paused, then added, "My mother and brother were murdered in the camp we were in, but my father survived and he lives near us, along with Ruth's parents and sisters."

Unsure of how to respond, Leo said nothing and the two men walked along in silence. Leo was stunned by what Noah had told him, but the more he thought about it, the more it all made sense. He did know that Noah was a very devoted father and he tried to make time for each of his children.

When they entered the house, Leo was overwhelmed with the amount of noise which was in the house and was glad that he only had one child.

He followed Noah into the kitchen, where a woman, who looked about in her in her late 20s, the same age as Noah, and the little girl looked about 12 or 13. "Ruth, this is Leo McGarry. He's going to stay with us for a while. Leo, this is my wife, Ruth."

Leo shook Ruth's hand and then turned his attention to the girl, who was sitting next to her mum. "Hello, I'm Leo. What's your name?"

Ruth nudged her daughter and threw her a smile and the girl replied, "Rebekah. Rebekah Lyman, I'm 13 years old."

As he was about to ask her a question, the sound of two playful children came into the kitchen and a girl and a boy came running in, obviously chasing after each other. Upon seeing that they had company, the girl straightened up and held out her hand to Leo. "Hello, I'm Joanie. Who are you?"

"I'm Leo McGarry." replied Leo and he saw Noah smile at his second daughter with pride on his face. "And who are you?" He turned to the young boy, whom he remembered now, was named Josh.

Josh's eyes locked with Joanie's, then with Rebekah, as if he was seeking encouragement from them, before he murmured in a quiet voice, "I'm Josh Lyman, sir."

Leo smiled at the younger boy and was very shocked that he was 5, as he looked much younger than that; he was obviously very close to his sisters.

After dinner, Rebekah went up to her bedroom for some quiet away from her younger siblings, but Joanie put on a Disney film and Leo was very surprised to see that Josh snuggled into her and watched the film with her, with no objection. As Noah and Ruth were cleaning up after dinner, Leo sat with Josh and Joanie and watched them. After about an hour of the film, Josh fell asleep in his sister's arms and she pulled a blanket over him in order to keep him warm.

At the moment, Leo thought that the bond Joanie and Josh shared was one which could not be broken by anything. In eight years to come, he would sadly, be proved wrong and the little boy whom he knew now was going to change, forever.

Present day…

That evening, when Charlie and Zoe were watching a film together, Charlie paused it and turned to his wife. "Zoe, I love you and I need to ask you this: you do want to have kids with me, don't you?"

Smiling, Zoe nodded. "Of course I do, Charlie. I guess I always wanted to be married before for a year before we had a baby, and I know we're only 25, but I think that we should start trying. How about, we don't activity try, but we don't do anything to avoid it and see where that leads us?"

Charlie squeezed his wife's hand and whispered, "That's a great plan. And I love you."

"I love you, too, Charlie." She leaned forward and they kissed.

Just as Josh had fed Naomi and Catherine-Françoise and put them both to bed, there was a knock on the door and he answered it. It was Mallory and she looked very upset.

He made her a cup of coffee, then sat next to her and asked her what was wrong, even though he knew.

Mallory sighed. "I guess-I guess a part of me always hoped-thought-that Mum and Dad would get back together at some point and now I'm quite sure that's never going to happen." She chuckled to herself. "She's still with Donna and she's driving her nuts!"

Biting his lip, Josh asked, "Mal, why does your mum think that you're still dating Rick?"

"I'm her only child and she has all of these expectations of me, so I lie to her sometimes." Her voice became chocked, then she continued, "Besides, Clark and I aren't together anymore; I broke up with him."

Josh stared at her. "What, why? I thought you liked him?"

"I liked him, I just didn't love him and I didn't think that it was fair for me to let him think that I was seeking out a serious relationship when I wasn't. I'm 29 already. I want to get married and have kids and my time's running out. I don't want to have kids as much as Donna, though." She smiled, then asked, "So, who do you think I should take to Abbey's party?"

Josh gave her his answer and then they sat together for a couple of hours, before Mallory kissed the girls goodnight and left to go home. When she returned home, she found that Donna had waited for her in case she wanted to talk, but Mallory declined and went to bed.


	21. 20: I love you, please come home! Part 1

Chapter 20: I love you, please come home!- part 1.

It was Abbey's birthday evening and she and Jed were getting ready for the party, to which Abbey was not looking forward; what she had wanted was to have a nice, family meal, but because of who Jed was, there was no chance that she was going to get that. She was glad that her son and daughter were going to be there, as well as Zoe and Josh, whom liked very much.

From the sitting room, Jed called to his wife. "Have you chosen a dress yet?"

Rolling her eyes, Abbey snapped, "No, I haven't chosen one yet. Will you let me choose one and shut up?"

Jed sighed. "Abbey, we've been married for 23 years and you haven't got any faster!"

Abbey walked into the sitting room, wearing a green dress. "Jed, we've been married for 25 years, Jed. Charlie and Amy are both 25. How does this dress look?"

Without looking, Jed replied, "It and you look beautiful."

"It would look better if you looked at it." Abbey smiled, then told him, "Jed, I'm ready."

Jed looked at his watch mockingly. "Great, the party started six hours ago, when you started getting dressed." He stood up and led his wife out of the room, following by their Secret Service agents.

A couple of hours before the party…

Donna knocked on the door of Joe's house and waited. She was wearing a dress which she, CJ, Mallory and Amy had picked out and she hoped that Joe would like it. When no reply came, she knocked again and waited.

The door opened and Joe walked out. Donna noticed that he looked tired and drawn. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Taking hold of her hands, Joe said, "Donna, I'm sorry, but I can't go to the party with you. I'm too busy. I'm sorry." With that, he turned away and closed the door, leaving Donna standing there, wondering what was going on and if she had done something wrong.

Present time…

"How many people are going to be at this party?" Abbey asked, as she and her husband made their way towards the room where the party was taking place.

Chuckling to himself, Jed replied, "About 200."

"Oh, this is going to be relaxing evening!" remarked his wife, in a sarcastic tone.

Jed stopped walking and his face turned serious, "Abbey, after this, there's something I need to tell you-something I should have told you before we got married, but I didn't. So, that's that's."

"Jed, whatever it is, it's never going to change the way I feel about you."

"Don't say that until I've told you." The tone in his voice was worrying her and she made a mental note to go and speak to Leo before the party was over, to see if he knew what was troubling Jed so much.

Just as Abbey was about to assure him that that would never happen because she loved him so much, the doors opened and they entered the hall, which was full of over 200 people. Inwardly, Abbey sighed and looked for her son and daughter, but outwardly, she smiled to all of people and hoped that she was a convincing gracious wife of a governor's wife.

She and Jed made their way over to the bar, as Jed wanted to get a drink, and Josh and Amy walked over to them, with their arms around each other, The pride Abbey felt when she saw her daughter with her true love was overwhelming and she was about to give her husband a look in order to tell him to be nice, but he looked happy, so she decided not to bother.

"Amy, my beautiful daughter, give me a hug!" Abbey declared, as she examined her daughter, before pulling her into a hug. She then held her at arm's length and whispered, "You look beautiful, darling."

Amy smiled back and replied, in the same tone, "Thanks, Mum." She then turned to her father, who opened his arms to her and planted a delicate kiss on her cheek, before turning to Josh and Amy could see the fear in her boyfriend's eyes, but he nodded politely and smiled, "Governor, it's good to see you. And you, too, Abbey." He had called Amy's mum by her first name for years, as he felt more comfortable around her than he did around Amy's father.

Jed nodded back, then inquired, "Amy, where's that granddaughter of mine?"

Very surprised that her dad had asked, Amy replied, "Josh's parents are in town, so they're looking after Naomi and Catherine-Françoise for the night, which means that we don't have to worry about getting home by a certain time." She laughed, but then remembered that her father's sense of humour was an acquired taste, so she shot her mum a pleading look.

"So, where are Mallory and Donna?" Abbey asked Josh, as Amy and Jed walked off into the party.

"Sam and Mallory are coming together, later, and I think Donna and Joe are coming with them. CJ's already here."

The two of them sat down and Abbey asked, "So, how are your parents?"

Picked up a glass of water, Josh replied, "They're good, thanks. They love spending time with the girls, so that's good. They love them to bits. It's sometimes hard to believe that they're only 40." He chucked, as the fact that his parents were so young was funny, as most of his friend's parents were in their 50s, at least.

"Amy said that you have a sister, Rebekah, how is she, where does she live?"

Josh hesitated before replying. "She lives in North Carolina, I think, with her husband. I don't really know." When Amy's mum cast him a questioning look, he expanded, "She and I don't get on-we haven't since we were kids."

Abbey shook her head. "You really should work on that, Josh; you only ever get one sister and one aunt for your daughters."

Looking down at his hands, Josh studied the glass in his hands and tried to stay calm. He knew that Abbey hadn't meant anything by what she had said, as she didn't know about Joanie, but that didn't mean that it didn't hurt him. Not a day went by when he didn't think of his dead sister.

Sensing that Josh was feeling uncomfortable, Abbey changed the subject by asking, "So, you and Amy are happy together?"

"Yes; we're very happy and so is Naomi." He smiled, remembering how happy his eldest daughter had been when he and Amy had told her that they were back together.

xxxx

Elsewhere in the room, CJ was ordering herself a drink when a familiar voice from behind spoke. "Nice dress, Claudia Jean."

Pulling her shawl around her, she turned around and saw Danny standing behind her. He smiled and she smiled back. "You look stunning." He whispered, with a look in his eyes; a look which CJ knew and recognised all too well.

Breaking the silence, CJ asked, "Do you want to dance?"

"No." Danny shook his head. "How long does this party go on for?"

Looking deep into his eyes, CJ replied, "A couple of hours, I think. Why do you ask? Are you asking for the same reason you asked me if I had a date for tonight?" She knew what she wanted; she just wanted to be sure that he wanted it as well.

Danny moved closer and kissed her on the lips. CJ responded instantly. They broke apart and their eyes met, then Danny whispered, "I love you. I have done since the first day we met."

Stroking his face, CJ replied, in the same tone, "I love you, too, Danny. Now, let's stop wasting time and get out of her." She put down her drink and they walked out of the party.

xxxx

Back at Donna and Mallory's flat, Mallory was ensuring that she looked nice in the mirror, even though Donna had told her numerous times that she did. Mallory had managed to persuade Donna to go to the party; she knew that she was upset about Joe, but she also knew that Donna needed to have fun, even if he was not there with her.

There was a knock on the door. Mallory opened it, as Donna was in her bedroom. It was Sam, dressed in a suit and tie and Mallory thought that he looked very nice and he thought that she looked stunning, but he was too scared to tell her that, so instead he asked where his sister was.

"She's getting ready. Do you want something to drink?" Mallory asked, as she turned on the kettle.

Sam nodded and sat down. An awkward silence ensued, partly because neither of them was sure what to say to the other; whilst they knew each other, they had only ever known each other because of Josh and it was very awkward for Sam, as he was worried that he would say something which would make him seem stupid and he did not want that.

Mallory set two cuts of the coffee down on the table and racked her brains for something to talk about. "How are the kids?" she asked, "What are their names again?"

"Demi, Nathan and Devon." Sam smiled at the very thought of his three children. He may not have seen them as much as he wished he could, but he loved them very much. There was another silence, then Sam asked, "Do you want to have kids, Mallory?"

Mallory looked down into the cup before replying. "Yes, I do. I just have to find the right person." She smiled to herself. "I guess sometimes, the person can be right in front of you and you don't know."

"Yes, I suppose sometimes, that can happen." Sam replied, in a very quiet voice; so quiet that Mallory almost did not hear him. "But that would never happen to you." He smiled, in an attempt to make himself feel more comfortable in this situation.

Their eyes met for a second and, in that moment, something occurred to Mallory; something which had never occurred to her before, although she had never thought about it that much. "I guess." She whispered, as she studied his features and his eyes and she began to move closer.

Allowing his instincts to move and ignoring his head, Sam moved forward too. Their faces were now very close and their eyes connected and he thought that he was going to have everything he had ever wanted since he had been 18: Mallory, as his girlfriend.

The door opened and Donna walked into the sitting room and she immediately regretting it, when she saw how her brother and roommate were sitting. The moment was broken and Mallory dismissed it as being something she had wanted to do because of her vulnerability and, to her, that was what it would have been, but not to Sam. As he thought about it more and more, he knew that Mallory didn't feel the same way and she never would, but, in those short minutes, there had been a part of him which had believed that they could be more than friends.

Those short moments were gone and he doubted if he would ever be able to have them again.

xxxx

In the hall, Amy had managed to get some time alone with her boyfriend and away from her father, so the two of them walked over to the bar and Amy asked for a glass of wine, whilst Josh asked for another glass of water; he had called his parents a couple of minutes before and Naomi and Catherine-Françoise were fine.

Their solitude, however, was interrupted when a man named Fred Barker came up to them.

"I'm Frank Barker. It's very nice to meet you."

Josh held out his hand. "Sure, I've heard of you. This is Amy Ziegler. Amy, this is Frank Barker."

Amy prevented herself from rolling her eyes, as Frank's views on women's role in society were something which she deeply hated. As they spoke, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Josh chuckling and she threw him a look.

After half an hour of listening to Frank Barker, Amy finished her drink and Josh pulled her onto the dance floor; they had danced together when they had been at university and they were accustomed to how the other moved.

"How many women do you have on your staff?" Amy inquired, in the middle of the dance.

Frowning and looked at her, Josh asked, "What, why do you ask?"

Smiling, his girlfriend replied, "40% of your staff are women."

"And what's wrong with that?" Josh asked, slightly worried of what the answer was going to be, but he knew that when Amy raised issues like this, that she was displeased with something.

Amy stopped dancing and replied, "Women made up 60% of Leo's vote. Don't you think they should make up more of 40% of your staff?" There was a silence and she hung her head. "I'm sorry; I shouldn't have this conversation with you; it isn't fair. I'll take it up with someone I'm not dating and in love with." She bit her lip and watched his face carefully.

"You're in love with me?" Josh asked, in a whisper, looking her in the eyes. His answer was a nod and he smiled,

The couple resumed their slow dance and rested their heads. With her head on Josh's shoulders, Amy allowed herself to relax and she realised that she felt safe. Here, where she was with Josh, she had never been happier and she wished that she could hold onto this moment forever and Josh was thinking the same thing.

Elsewhere in the hall, Abbey sought out Leo, in search for the answer to her husband's unusual mood and to find out what he thought would make her no longer love him.

"Leo," she called, once she had finally found him, "may I have a word, in private?"

He nodded and they walked out into the corridor. "Are you enjoying the party?" he asked, with a grin on his face.

In reply, Abbey smiled and shook her head. "Leo, there' s something wrong with Jed. He said-he said that he needs to tell me something, which he should have told me before we married. Do you know what it is? Whatever it is, it's not going to change the way I feel about him."

The look on Leo's face provided her with the answer that he knew what Jed meant and she wondered why he knew and she did not. "Well, what is it?" she asked, even though she knew that Leo was not going to tell her.

"I'm sorry, Abbey, I can't tell you. Just…find Jed after the party and be prepared to listen to everything he tells you." With that, he walked off, leaving Abbey even more confused than she had been before she had spoken to him.


	22. Chap 21: I love you, please come home: 2

**I do not own the West Wing. Please review. :)**

Josh and Amy's intimate moment was interrupted by Sam and Mallory's arrival, as Sam claimed to have something very important to discuss with Josh, but his friend knew that it was of a personal nature as opposed to a professional. He excused himself from Amy and followed his friend out of the ballroom and into a quiet room, where Sam had taken to passing, which Josh knew he only did when he was stressed.

Josh sat down and watching his friend, waiting for him to talk to him about whatever it was.

After making himself and Sam a coffee and with Sam's silence, Josh decided to try to guess what was wrong with Sam. He passed him a cup of coffee, then asked, "Sam, does this have something to do with Lisa, by any chance?"

Sam shook his head, but continued to pace. "No. No, Lisa has nothing to do with this, although I do need to talk to her regarding the custody of the kids. So, you and Amy came together, then?" he asked, in an attempt to deflect.

"Yes, she and I are dating now." Josh couldn't help but smile as he said that, but then he turned his attention back to his friend. "Sam, if it isn't Lisa, then what's made you act like this?"

Looking down into his cup of coffee, Sam sighed. "I went to Donna and Mallory's flat-to pick Mallory up, as she suggested that we go together, as friends. I don't know where she got that idea, thanks, mate." He threw a smile at his friend, then continued. "She and I were alone in the kitchen, talking about Demi, Nathan and Devon and we-we sort of had a moment and I-I think I can guess where it was going, but we were interrupted. I think that she was about to kiss me, which makes no sense, because she doesn't feel that way about me, or maybe she does. You know Mallory the best out of all of us, what do you think?" He took a sip of his coffee, more for something to do than thirst.

"Sam. I-I've known Mallory since we were kids. Ever since this thing happened with Sean, she's been really fragile and…in need of physical comfort." He wanted to imply what he thought without saying it out load.

"You think I'd take advantage of her?" Sam snapped, turning to his friend, with anger in her eyes. "Do you not know me? You know I'd never do that to Mallory-or anyone!"

Josh bit his lip before saying, in a very carefully paced tone. "I think you've wanted this-to be with Mallory-for so long, since you were 18, that if she shows any sign of feeling the same way, you may not hold back." He knew that Mallory did not share Sam's feelings, but he was trying to communicate his point to Sam.

There was a long silence, then Sam whispered, "I know that her feeling the same way is a fantasy of mine, but there was a moment, when I thought that she did and I was happy." He sighed, then asked, "Do you think I should let go of the idea of she and I being together?"

Playing with his cup of coffee, Josh nodded. "Yes, I do. I know you told me not to give up on my relationship with Amy, but that was different."

"Because you and Amy had had an actual relationship before you got back together." Sam finished off the thought which he knew had been in Josh's mind. "Do you know what it's like to be in love with someone who will never feel the same way?"

That caught Josh's attention and he looked up at his friend, with shock in his eyes. "You're in love with her?" He repeated.

Sam sat down in a chair next to his best friend. "I didn't realise it, but I obviously am. I know what love feels like, Josh, so don't question me on it. I was with Lisa for years and look how that ended up." He sighed. "I don't want to give up yet. Can you understand that?"

His friend nodded, but made no further remark and Sam guessed that he wanted this conversation to end as soon as possible, then he voiced something which he had often thought. "One thing I don't understand about you is that you and Mallory are really close, like brother and sister, and yet, you're not close to your own sister, whom you never mention. Why is that, Josh?" he was genuinely concerned about why Josh was so distant from his sister.

Josh stood up and walked over to the window, before stating, in a tight voice, "It's complicated." He pushed his thoughts of Joanie out of his head and asked, "Have you seen CJ, I haven't seen her for ages?"

"I think she and Danny have gone to spend some…quality time together." replied Sam, as it was obvious that Josh did not want to talk about his relationship with Rebekah. "I'm assuming they're back together, then. Where are you with your relationship with Amy?"

Turning back to face his friend, Josh asked what did he mean.

"I mean, has she moved in with you yet? The two of you were dancing together earlier and that looked pretty intimate?"

Josh smiled at his friend. "I'm in love with her, Sam. I just haven't had the courage to tell her yet and, no, we haven't done it yet."

Hesitating slightly, Sam inquired, "Do you think that's to do with Kate? I mean, are you still in love her Kate as well as Amy?"

"I don't miss Kate half as much as I did. She has been…gone for 7 months now. I guess I haven't been intimate with Amy yet because of what happened last time; we were intimate and then she broke up with me. Before I go that far with her this time, I want to be sure and feel secure."

"Is a relationship ever secure? Seriously? I was happy with Lisa and she ended up cheating on me. You can never tell what's going on in another person's head-you just have to make an educated guess. And she can't tell that you love her if you don't tell her. Tell her and take a risk, because if you don't, you might regret it." He paused, then sighed. "Donna's here on her own, by the way. You might want to go and give her some company." He smiled, as he knew that Josh and Donna were very close friends.

Josh nodded and left the room, leaving Sam to wonder if his feeling for Mallory would ever go away?

xxxx

In the ballroom, Abbey sought out her son, as she wondered if he would know what his father was keeping from her; the thing he claimed he should have told her before they married, which had been 25 years ago.

"Do you have any idea what he's talking about?" she asked him, after she had recited to him what Jed had told her before the party.

Charlie shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mum, I have no idea-unless, it's something to do with my birth mother, but I don't think that would be the case, because I don't know of anything and surely, he would have told me." He saw the concerned look on his mum's face. "I'm sure it's nothing, Mum-just Dad, being Dad. Don't worry about it."

Abbey forced a smile. "Thanks, Charlie." As he walked away, she called his name. He turned and walked back to her.

She hesitated, then asked, "Do you wish that I hadn't married your dad, I mean so early after your mother's death?"

Regarding Abbey carefully, Charlie took hold of her hands and kissed her on the check. "If it weren't for you and Amy, I would only have Dad. So, no, I'm glad that you married and I love you like my mother; I've always considered you my mum and I always will." He smiled and walked away, to re-join the party and Zoe.

xxxx

Josh found Donna in a side room, where she was sitting in a chair, staring at the laptop on her knee. She was also drinking a glass of wine and Josh was glad to see that the glass was more than half full. He wondered why Joe was not there.

Donna saw Josh and forced a smile. "Joe hasn't called me. I don't know what's wrong with him recently." She laughed and waited for Josh to respond.

"Can we clear up how interested I am in the gomers you see in your free time?" Josh asked and they both laughed, which had been in the intended affect, but Donna knew that he did mean what he had said. In a serious voice, Josh remarked, "I have to confess of all of the gomers you have seen, Joe is the only one I like. He's a nice guy, Donna; you've shown good judgment in that area."

Staring at her laptop, Donna whispered, "I love him and I know that he feels the same way-or I thought that he did. I don't know what to do. If he doesn't want to be in this relationship, then I guess-I guess I know what I have to do."

"But that isn't what you want, is it?" Josh sat down next to her, concerned about her. He passed her a tissue and she wiped her eyes.

"Of course it isn't what I want: I love him." Pushing away her thoughts of her boyfriend, she smiled. "I have some bad news. I made a bet in your name on two English football teams and you-well, you-lost."

Unable to prevent himself from smiling, Josh asked, "What kind of bet was it?"

"Pick- the- winner type bet. I bet that Derby would win in their game against Chelsea."

"You picked Derby over Chelsea?" Josh asked, indignantly; he didn't know much about British football, but he did know who the good teams.

Donna titled her head to the side and remarked, "Well, technically, you did." She laughed and Josh laughed too. "Go back to the party; Amy will be wondering where you are."

Watching her carefully, Josh asked if she was sure and she replied in the affirmative, so he stood up and walked back to the party.

xxxx

As the party drew to an end, people started to part ways and say their goodbyes.

As Josh and Amy were collecting their coats, the latter asked, "So, do you want me to come round tonight?" the tone of her voice and her facial expression informed Josh that this was leading question and he hesitated.

His girlfriend saw this and bowed her head, before looking at him and forcing a smile. "It's fine, don't worry. I'll see you tomorrow." She kissed him, but it was not a proper kiss and then walked away. Josh was about to walk home, but then he saw Sam walk into a bar and he followed him, wondering why he was going to a bar at such an hour.

xxxx

Abbey and Jed entered their bedroom. In silence, the couple of twenty-five years changed into their pyjamas, then they sat down and Abbey asked, "Jed, what did you need to tell me?"

Jed sighed, then began. "Before I was with Iris, Charlie's mother, I was with a woman named Lily Charles. We lived together and we loved each other. I started dating her after I broke up with the girl I'd dated at university. Anyway, one morning, I woke up and Lily was gone; she had left a note, saying that her parents had threated to disinherit her, if she continued her relationship with me, because of my religious beliefs. I accepted that and tried to move on. Then I found out that she was pregnant…with my child. She gave birth and I visited her and the baby." He smiled at the memory of the first time had seen his first-born child. "Lily and I named her Bonnie. A couple of years later, I married Iris, we had Charlie and you know the story from there. Bonnie's about 27 now and she and I exchange the odd letter, but I lost contact with Lily after Iris died. Bonnie is Charlie and Amy's sister, Abbey, and your stepdaughter. I'm sorry I didn't tell you or the kids."

Instead of reply, Abbey kissed and hugged him, which he knew was her way of telling him that nothing was going to change between them.

xxxx

In the bar, Josh ordered a glass of water and sat down next to Sam, who was on his third bottle of bear. "Sam, what's wrong?"

"My life is a complete void," Sam declared, "I'm in love with someone who's never going to feel the same way and I've only ever loved one woman…in that way. I'm pathetic."

Shaking his head, Josh assured his friend that he was not pathetic, but he also knew that Sam was so drunk that he was not going to listen.

After Josh left, Sam was joined by Danny, who was wearing different clothes from what he had been wearing earlier that evening.

"So, are you and CJ back together?"

Smiling, Danny nodded and replied, "Yes, we are. In a very big way." He looked over Sam's shoulder, then remarked, "That woman over there is looking at you."

Curiosity getting the better of him, Sam turned around and looked. The woman was wearing a red dress and she had brown hair and brown eyes. She waved at Sam and he waved back. He glanced back at Danny, who stood up and left the table as the woman in the red dress walked over and sat down next to Sam.

xxxx

Amy knocked on the door of Josh and Sam's flat and waited for the door to open.

The door opened and she walked in. "Donna called me, what's going on?"

Josh closed the door behind her and the radio started playing. It was what they referred to as 'their song' and the significance of this song was not lost on Amy and she knew that Josh had done it deliberately.

She slid of her coat and rested her head against the door frame of Josh's bedroom, before asking, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Smiling, Josh replied, "I've never been so sure about anything in my life. I love you, Amy." He paused then asked, "Did you and Allan"—

"No, we didn't." Amy shook her head. Their eyes connected and she whispered, "You're the only one I've ever loved. It's only ever been you, Josh."

He leaned forward and kissed her, gently, but showing his love. In order to give him confidence, Amy deepened the kiss. After sharing this kiss, he moved back and their eyes met and they both saw love in the eyes of the other; the same thing they had seen when they had been 19. Their love for each other had not altered since their first time eight years before.

'I'm on fire for you. You don't have to be alone. You don't have to be on your own. 'Cause I love you, please come home!...Trying to get that message home'.


End file.
